Young Mastermind
by Anne Nonymus
Summary: Parker decides that he doesn't like the idea of Catherine as his dad's girlfriend. He has someone else in mind for the part. He's with his dad for the week and he decides that it's time to take action. Will the young mastermind succeed?
1. Interesting Questions

**A/N: This one is for my buddy 2BBornot2BB. Thanks for the inspiration.**

**To those who are waiting for updates for my other stories - so sorry, the plot bunnies keep attacking me. I will update them as soon as I can.**

**Do I own Bones or any of its characters? The answer is an unfortunate no. **

**The Great Debate**

Brennan was at home, quietly working on her book. In this latest chapter, Kathy and Andy had broken up because he proposed to her, and she wasn't ready to say yes. Kathy wanted to, she really did, but after his most recent trip to the hospital from a suspect shooting him in the leg, she wasn't sure how much more she could take. Andy was always one of those maverick heroes who seemed to have little regard to his own life - was always ready to jump in and save lives at the expense of his own. What he didn't realize was how closely it was tied to Kathy's. Kathy was afraid of the next time, that she might be too late to save him, the next suspect that might be smarter than they are and that Andy might not be lucky enough to survive. She had enough of a hard time dealing with his heroics as his partner and his girlfriend. She wasn't ready to be a widow.

Brennan had been crafting the speech that Kathy was making to Andy as she tried to make him understand her decision, how it broke her heart to hurt him but she needed distance, perspective. She needed to steel her heart against losing him again. Kathy had once been told that Andy was dead, and the pain she felt was excruciating. It was something she had never felt before, and never wanted to again. It was also the most difficult ten days that she had ever had to endure. She didn't want to think about how she would survive if he never came back.

Tears were rolling down Brennan's cheeks as she typed, pouring her emotions into her words. She knew that the news of her two main characters breaking up wouldn't be well received by fans, but this was a necessary development in the evolution of her characters. She had to make the fans understand why this was happening, how sometimes two people can become far too close and in order to properly consider what to do next, she would need space to think objectively. Booth had become too much a part of her life that she feared...

Andy - Andy had become too much a part of Kathy's life. It was nothing more than a simple type-o. No reason to make a fuss over it, she thought to herself.

She took a sip of white wine from the goblet that sat right beside her uneaten salad. She smirked, knowing what Booth would say if he knew that she hadn't had dinner yet. He would most certainly lecture her on taking care of herself and the necessity of the consumption of food in order to optimize one's thought processes and production output. Of course he'd put it in simpler terms and add some sort of humorous comment. He was probably doing so while he had dinner with Catherine. The thought that Booth was still seeing Catherine caused her no small amount of pain, but what could she do? She was the one that told Booth she wasn't willing to risk their steady friendship and dependable partnership for a questionable chance at a romantic relationship. Brennan knew that she was terrible at relationships - she seemed to choose the wrong men, or found the right men who would eventually realize she wasn't capable of giving more of herself than she already was and leave her. Those rejections hurt, but she got over them in time. She wouldn't know what to do if she didn't have Booth in her life any longer. She would rather have him remain in her life as a friend than engage in a relationship only to have him leave like Sully did.

She sighed, irritated at herself for not having the discipline to keep her thoughts ordered, and set her sights back to her laptop screen. The cursor blinked at her, taunting her for not knowing what to type next. She knew that it was irrational to think that the cursor was setting out to annoy her, but she couldn't help it. Usually when she was uncertain as to what would happen next in one of her stories, she would either call Angela - who was on a date with Hodgins and most likely wouldn't appreciate the interruption, or she would call Booth to temporarily distract her. She found that a conversation with him tended to be as enlightening as it was entertaining. Yet the option of calling Booth was not open to her on this night. He was with Catherine, probably entertaining her with his conversational skills.

With a light growl, she saved what she had already typed and powered down her computer. She intended to get some sleep and try to finish the chapter in the morning when her cell phone rang. She looked on the caller ID and smiled when she saw a familiar name.

"Hello Booth, have you concluded your date with Catherine already?" she inquired.

"Bones, it's me," a young voice hissed. "You have to get here right away! We need you!"

"Parker,what's wrong?" asked Brennan, fending off the panic that was bubbling up inside her. "Where are you? Where is your father?"

"I'm at Dad's place," he rasped, obviously trying not to be heard by anyone other than Brennan. "Please hurry!"

She heard a short click and the call was ended. Brennan ran to her closet, grabbed the gun safe, and unlocked it with a quick and practiced hand. She took the 9mm within, making sure that it was loaded before throwing it in her purse and running to her car. Driving as fast as she dared, she made it to Booth's in record time, somehow managing to avoid being pulled over by law enforcement for speed violations. She was about to call for backup when she realized that she had forgotten her phone at home. It was foolish to have forgotten her cell phone, yet remember to bring a weapon with her, but at least she was armed in case Booth had been injured by an assailant and the perpetrator remained at the scene while Parker hid from him. She did find it odd that Parker had called her instead of 911, but she would have to ask him about that later. Parker said that he and Booth needed her, and she knew that she would do whatever was necessary to be by their side.

She used the keys that Booth gave her to gain entrance into the building. When she got to his floor, she cautiously drew her weapon, careful to keep it pointing downwards and at her side while she slowly and quietly unlocked Booth's door. Suddenly the door flew open and she was met with Booth's gun aimed at her head while she leveled her gun at him.

"Bones! What the hell!" exclaimed Booth, putting his gun down. "I could have shot you!"

"I'm glad that you didn't." she remarked, thumbing the safety back on before returning her gun to her bag.

"What are you doing here?" asked Booth, suddenly looking away. "Um...do you want a jacket or something?"

It was then that Brennan looked down to see what she was wearing. She had been at home, relaxing when she received the call from Parker. She was so worried over his well being and that of Booth's that she didn't stop to consider changing out of her black silk camisole and matching boy cut silk shorts. Although what she was clad in was inappropriate for wear outside of the home, she wasn't embarrassed - she followed a very strenuous fitness regime as well as practiced the martial arts of judo, jeet kun do, and jujitsu and the result of that was a toned and fit body. One that was inciting an interesting reaction from Booth.

She was amused to see that his face was turning red, and although it seemed as though the gentlemanly thing to do would be to look away, he couldn't help but steal glances at her.

"Here." he muttered, throwing his leather jacket around her. It was the one that was on the hook by his door, the one he wore regularly, and as he put it on her she found herself surrounded in his warmth and smell. She gasped, and felt more than saw just how close he was to her. She looked up, and his face was mere inches away from hers.

"You want to come in?" Booth sputtered, backing away quickly and looking everywhere else but at her. It was bad enough that she show up at his door, wearing a barely there silk shorts and top outfit, no bra in sight, dark silky brown hair wild and wavy, she was wielding a gun and wearing his leather jacket. He was definitely going to hell for the thoughts he was having of his partner.

"I mean do you want to go to my apartment," he corrected himself upon realizing that what he said could have been construed as a double entendre. "You know, rather than standing out here in the hallway half naked."

"I'm not half naked Booth." she protested, opening up the jacket so that she could demonstrate her point. In response, Booth closed his eyes and started muttering.

"What are you saying Booth?" inquired Brennan.

"I'm just praying." Booth said with a half sigh, keeping his eyes shut.

"Why are you praying?" she asked, trying to discern Booth's thoughts with a tilt of her head and a curious frown upon her face.

"It's nighttime, I pray at night before I sleep," he replied, carefully turning to go back into his apartment. "Can we at least continue this conversation out of the hallway?"

"Sure." Brennan shrugged, following him inside.

"Bones, could you cover up?" asked Booth tentatively. "Parker's with me tonight."

"I know." she replied nonchalantly, though she did as he asked.

"What do you mean you know he's here?" scoffed Booth. "Becca's mom had to be rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery, she just dropped him off an hour ago. How could you have known he'd be here?"

"Bones!" the boy in question squealed, running towards her and clamping his arms around her waist. "You're here! I knew you'd come."

"Of course I'd come over if you called," Brennan reassured him, holding him tight briefly before dislodging him from her. "Especially since I was under the impression that you and your father were in danger."

"You called Bones? When did you call her?" asked Booth, looking rather puzzled.

"I used your cell phone to call her while I was in the bathroom dad." Parker replied as though the answer should be obvious.

"Wait, that was only ten minutes ago," said Booth, doing some quick calculations in his head. "You made it here in ten minutes, all the way from your place?"

"Well - yes, I suppose I did," replied Brennan. "Parker called me and said that the two of you needed me, and he told me to hurry. From the intonation and the urgency in his voice I deduced incorrectly that you and he required immediate assistance, perhaps even rescue."

"Is that why you rushed over here Bones?" Booth smiled warmly at her. "You thought we were in trouble? Is that why you're not wearing...shoes?"

Brennan looked down and sure enough, she had made it all the way to Booth's apartment bare foot.

"That seems to be a logical conclusion." she replied with a shrug, hoping that the blush that she felt creeping up her face was simply her imagination. "I suppose that due to my concern for your well being and that of Parker's I didn't think to consider a change of clothes or footwear."

"Wait," Booth paused, tilting his head and taking a glance around. "I don't hear sirens. Did you call 911?"

"Why would I call emergency services?" asked Brennan. "You and Parker seem to be in good health and there doesn't seem to be any evidence of criminal activity."

"Yeah, but you thought that Parker and I were in some kind of trouble," Booth pointed out. "The kind of trouble that you would bring a gun to, and you didn't call for backup? Are you crazy? What if there was someone here? What if there was a whole gang of bad guys waiting for you-"

"My main concern was for you and Parker!" she argued. "This is my reward for 'rushing over here' to provide you with assistance? I didn't even change out of my bedclothes or put on shoes because I was -"

"Bones, why are you wearing my dad's jacket?" inquired Parker innocently, with a sly smile.

"Parker, why did you call Bones this late at night and make it sound like we needed her help?" Booth asked sternly, changing the subject.

"I had to call her!" exclaimed Parker. "It was an emergency. I can't let you keep dating that woman dad."

"You called Bones because you don't like Catherine?" Booth asked, not sure whether he was more irritated or more puzzled. "Is that why you were rude to her?"

"You were rude to Dr. Bryar?" questioned Brennan, concerned. "There must have been a reason why he was impolite to her Booth. Parker has only ever been rather well behaved and considerate with me."

"I knew you'd understand," sighed Parker in relief, looking upon Brennan with a mixture of adoration and respect. "Dad was cleaning up the table and he told me to talk to Dr. Bryar. I did! I tried to be nice, and I even asked her about where she works. She started telling me about the aquarium and I told her that I went there on a field trip a couple of months ago. We started talking about sharks and stuff. It was kinda fun talking to her at first. Then I asked her if she knows important people at the aquarium because Bones knows important people at the museum and I get to see stuff that no one else gets to see. She said that she could take me for a VIP tour if Dad says it was okay. I said I'd ask, and she said that she bet that it would be more fun than the museum. I told her no way, that the Jeffersonian was the best, and that I love going there. She said that I'd like the aquarium better if I gave it a chance."

"She has a point there Parker," sighed Booth. "You can't be sure that you wouldn't enjoy the aquarium better until you actually go and see how much fun it can be."

"Your father makes a logical argument," added Brennan. "You should withhold your judgement until you go to the aquarium and fairly assess the quality of their exhibits and enjoyability of their programs. Until then you don't have the necessary evidence to support your claim. You could find that you do enjoy your time at the aquarium and that your beliefs on the matter are unsubstantiated."

"What's unobsansiated?" asked Parker, scrunching his face in confusion.

"Unsubstantiated means that there's no real reason for you to think that way," explained Booth. "Catherine was just trying to get you to like her, that's all."

"But I don't," shrugged Parker. "I like Bones better."

"Parker, what did I say about being rude?" warned Booth.

"What? I'm just being honest," pouted Parker. "You and Bones said that I should always tell the truth."

"There's a difference between being honest and being rude," reminded Booth. "And being honest doesn't mean that you should forget your manners."

"I'm sorry dad," Parker said sullenly before continuing his argument. "But you weren't here when we were talking. She hates hockey, she doesn't like comic books and she likes country music. Country music dad! What kind of person likes country music?"

"She has the right to like whatever music she wants," shrugged Booth. "Just because she likes country music and hates hockey and comic books doesn't mean that she's a bad person."

"That's true," agreed Brennan. "I'm not a comic book aficionado nor am I a fan of hockey, and yet you still like me, right?

"Yeah," admitted Parker. "But you dress up as wonder woman for Halloween every year, and she's the best girl superhero ever. And you go to my dad's hockey games."

"I go to your father's hockey games to support him, not as a devotee of the sport." explained Brennan.

"I just don't get why you can't be dad's girlfriend." replied Parker petulantly.

"We've discussed it before Parker," Brennan reminded him. "Your father and I work together. We can't be involved romantically if we work together."

"I still say it's a stupid reason," Parker reiterated. "Why can't you work together and be boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"Because..." began Booth, realizing that what Parker said was true - it was a stupid reason. "Because those are the rules."

"You're the one that says that you shouldn't follow rules just because they're the rules," Parker pointed out. "When I stood up to Dylan Meyers because he was bullying Avery Carter, you said that you were proud of me. Even though I got in trouble for fighting, you said that you were proud of me for doing the right thing and protecting someone who needed help. You said that I shouldn't get into fights unless I was defending myself or if I was trying to help someone else and there was no other way. You said that sometimes you have to do the right thing even if the rules tell you not to. You shouldn't follow the rules if it doesn't make sense to."

As much as Booth hated it, Parker was making sense. He looked to Brennan for support and to come up with a reason that Parker would accept, hopefully one that wouldn't involve explaining how his father wasn't good enough for her or she didn't feel the same way that he did.

"Parker, you're aware of the risks that are involved in what your father and I do, correct?" asked Brennan gently. When he nodded, she continued. "In our line of work, becoming romantically involved with someone you work with is not a good idea. It can become a distraction, and when you're pursuing killers, you can't afford to be distracted."

"Dr. Hodgins and Angela work with you guys, right?" inquired Parker.

"Yeah, why?" replied Booth hesitantly.

"Didn't they just get married?" Parker pointed out.

"Okay, you want to know the real reason Bones and I can't be together?" huffed Booth, pointing to the couch ordering him to sit. "The real reason is..."

He was just about to inform his son on the harsher realities of life when he happened to look over at Brennan. There was an expectancy swimming in her blue gray eyes, and it was almost as if she wanted to hear the answer as well. In that moment, all his words left him and he couldn't come up with anything. He couldn't remember a single reason why he and the woman he loved were apart.

"The real reason your father and I can't be together is," continued Brennan in a quiet voice. "Our partnership, what we do is too important to risk. The unique combination of science and investigative techniques we employ has been extremely effective, and together he and I bring to justice killers that might otherwise never have been caught using traditional means. If we were to become romantically involved and we eventually decide to end that aspect of our relationship, naturally it would affect our partnership as well. Due to the ill feelings and resentment from our break up, we would no longer be able to work together, and all of the murders that we would have solved would go unpunished."

Parker sat quietly, seeming to absorb what Brennan had just said when he suddenly smiled brightly at her.

"So, you do like my dad!" Parker giggled. He looked over at the flabbergasted adults and had to reign in a laughing fit. "Don't worry, I already knew that."

"Parker, didn't you hear a word that I said?" Brennan practically whined, her face turning a bright red.

"Yeah, I listened to every word," nodded Parker solemnly. "You said that you and my dad being partners was important and that together you catch bad guys no one else can catch. I didn't hear you say that you didn't like my dad in that way."

Booth gulped and stared at Brennan. Was it true? Was his nine year old son able to see something he wasn't able to? Could Bones really have felt the same way he felt the whole time?

"Don't worry," Parker reassured her with a hug. "My dad really likes you too. Every time he talks about you he gets this really goofy look on his face and he can't stop smiling. And he talks about you a lot."

"Is this true Booth?" she asked him earnestly, turning to him.

"Well..." Booth wanted to say yes, he wanted to say that he talked about her a lot because all he could think about was her, that when he wasn't with her he felt like a part of him was missing. But when she was this close, when she was looking not just at him but into him all he wanted to do was take her in his arms and kiss her. Even though Parker brought up the possibility that Bones might actually have feelings for him, she hadn't admitted it yet. There was a greater likelihood that she didn't and he wasn't about to get rejected in front of his son.

"You should go to bed Park, it's getting late." he muttered, getting up and trying to pretend that he didn't see a flicker of disappointment in Brennan's eyes.

"Dad, come on, just tell her!" pleaded Parker. "I know how much you like Bones, and now you know that she likes you!"

"Parker, I realize how much you want me and your father to be a couple," hedged Brennan. "But-"

"I know, you said that you're afraid of what would happen if you and dad broke up," he sighed, interrupting her. Booth gave him a warning look and Parker quickly apologized. "I'm sorry for cutting you off Bones, I know I shouldn't have done it. But I heard what you said, and what dad said about you and he hooking up. Thing is, you two keep talking about what would happen if you broke up, but what if you didn't? What if you two ended up being happy together?"

"Alright, that's enough Parker," said Booth, putting his foot down. This wasn't a conversation he wanted to have with her while his son was around. "Time for bed, now."

"Bones, you should go out with my dad," Parker announced decisively. "You should withhold your judgement until you go out on a date with him and fairly assess what he's like as a boyfriend and the enjoyability of being with him. Until then you don't have the necessary evidence to support your claim. Maybe you'll realize that you do like being his girlfriend and that your beliefs on the matter are unsubstantiated."

Brennan and Booth looked at each other, impressed that Parker managed to throw their arguments back at each other. They each wanted to say yes, but were too plagued by doubt and fear to say it. They turned their gazes towards the clever little boy and the earnest expression on his face helped make up their minds.

"If we go on a date, will you promise to stop bugging us about it?" proposed Booth. "No more late night calls to Bones and you'll be nice to Catherine if it doesn't work out?"

"Nope," Parker said, shaking his head emphatically. "One date doesn't make you boyfriend and girlfriend. You have to promise to really try to be a couple. I want you and Bones to go out for a week. And I'll be watching since I'm here while Mom is taking care of Gram while she's in the hospital."

"Parker..." they both gritted simultaneously.

"Come on guys, you have to give this a fair chance before you say that it won't work out," he beseeched. "I promise that after the week is over and if it doesn't work out, I won't say one more word about it. I'll be nice to Catherine and even go on the aquarium tour. Please?"

"My son, the matchmaker," Booth quipped nervously. He looked over at Brennan, who was studiously avoiding his gaze, and over to Parker, who looked back anxiously. "Parker, I think-"

"Booth, may I speak to you for a moment?" Brennan pipped up, grabbing him by the arm and leading him to the kitchen.

"What is it Bones?" asked Booth, his heart hammering against his ribcage, hoping that he was about to be rewarded by his patience.

"Maybe we should say yes," Brennan said nervously. "I mean, Parker does seem to be rather invested in the idea and perhaps the only way to divest him of this notion is to demonstrate to him the likelihood that this wouldn't work out. That is, unless you don't-"

"No, you're right," interrupted Booth before she talked herself out of her decision. "I mean, Parker seems to need some sort of proof that we should just be partners, right."

"Precisely." she smiled at him.

"So, we'll be boyfriend and girlfriend for a week?" confirmed Booth. It wasn't exactly what he wanted, but maybe Parker was right, maybe he could change her mind.

"Yes, you and I will be a romantically involved couple for a week." she agreed. It wasn't exactly what she had in mind, although perhaps Parker was correct and she may be able to change Booth's mind.

They returned to the living room, hand in hand and said "You've got a deal!"


	2. Movie Night

**A/N: Hey folkses! Sorry I haven't updated in awhile, life has been kicking by arse. Been trying to get ready for my surgery, and now it's here. Well, tomorrow morning I go under the knife so I won't be able to update for a while so I hope that this will tide y'all over for a while. **

**Wish me luck.**

**Thanks to all of those who've alerted, favorited and reviewed. Mwah!**

**Even after all the wishing and hoping I've done, I still don't own Bones or any of its characters. There's a brief mention of Superman Returns and I don't own that either. **

**Movie Night**

Parker yelled out a loud whoop followed by a fist pump which was met by a stern look from Booth.

"It's late Parker," Booth admonished him lightly. "You should know better than to be yelling like that and disturbing the neighbors."

"Sorry dad," he apologized with an appropriate amount of regret. "I was just really happy."

"Alright," Booth relented. "Just tone it down a bit will you?"

"Okay," agreed Parker. "Why don't the three of us watch a movie?"

"Parker, it's past your bedtime," Booth pointed out. "And besides, did you consider that Bones might be tired? You called her when she was getting ready to go to bed."

Booth regretted saying that last bit, since it reminded him of what was being hidden by his leather jacket. Flashes of silk and silhouettes danced seductively in his mind and he shut his eyes against them. He took a couple of deep breaths, counted backwards from ten, and it wasn't until he returned his focus to his son and his partner that he realized he missed something.

"Sorry, what?" muttered Booth as he was met with their expectant gazes.

"I just said, what if Bones stayed over?" suggested Parker. "I mean, she can't drive all the way home without pants, right? She can borrow some of your clothes, we can watch a movie together and in the morning we can go with her to her place so that she could change before we go to the zoo."

"Wait, we're going to the zoo?" asked a confused Booth.

"Yeah Dad, don't you remember?" replied a theatrically exasperated Parker. "You said that when I get to stay with you next, we'd go to the zoo. You promised."

"Okay, I did promise," conceded Booth. "But did you ask Bones if she wanted to go? Or did you gloss over that part. She may have plans you know Park."

"Well, normally I spend my weekends at the lab," offered Brennan. "I find that it's quieter and I am able to accomplish more work at that time than over the work week."

"You work on the weekends?" scoffed Parker. "Well, that was before you had a boyfriend!"

"I've had boyfriend's before Parker." Brennan chuckled lightly.

"And did those other boyfriends let you work on the weekends?" Parker persisted.

"It wasn't up to them," Brennan informed him. "It's my choice how I spend my free time whether I'm dating someone or not."

"Dad says that everyone needs balance," replied Parker. "He says that if you work hard, then you should give yourself time to play too. And that when you care about someone, you make sure that when they work too much they take a break. You look after the people you care about."

"He does, does he?" Brennan smirked, gazing warmly at Booth.

"Well Bones, even geniuses have to give their brains a rest every now and then." grinned Booth.

"Booth, brains don't rest," corrected Brennan. "Even when you're sleeping, your brain is always at work. Sleep is merely the heightened anabolic state in which sensory and motor activity is relatively suspended during a regularly occurring period of semi or total unconsciousness during which there is a marked decrease in ability to react to stimuli."

"Huh?" Parker looked at her with a confused expression.

"She just means that when you sleep, you don't turn your brain off, you just don't react to things the way you do when you're awake." explained Booth.

"Well put Booth." she smiled at him.

"Just goes to show how well I understand you Bones." he smiled back.

"No, it just goes to show how well you interpret scientific data." She laughed.

Parker let them stay in what Ange once called "their privacy bubble" for a few more moments before interrupting.

"So, why don't I get you something to change into Bones," offered Parker, taking Brennan by the hand. "And Dad, could we have some popcorn so that it could be like a real movie night?"

"Sure," sighed Booth. "Let me just change first. I'll make the popcorn and you get the movie ready."

Booth grabbed a change of clothes to sleep in, and set aside an oversized shirt and sweatpants for Brennan, deciding to change in the bathroom so that Brennan could use his room. The thought of Brennan in his room and wearing his clothes was a little much to take, but a short prayer and a few deep breaths later, he was nuking some popcorn and grabbing juice boxes for the three of them. With snacks in hand, he headed to the living room only to find it empty.

"Park? Bones?" he called out.

"We're in here Dad!" Parker replied. With a gulp, Booth noted that his son's voice was coming from his bedroom. He looked up at the ceiling and lightly shook his head, briefly wondering why God was torturing him before heading to his room.

The sight he was greeted with made things even worse.

There, on his king sized bed lay his son in his junior fed pajamas, and to one side was his partner wearing _his_ FBI shirt and she was comfortably tucked under his sheets, lounging there as if she had done it a million times.

"Hey, I thought we were watching a movie?" he asked, hoping that his voice didn't sound as tight to their ears as it did to his.

"We are," confirmed Parker with an innocent grin. "We're watching it in here, like a real sleepover."

"Parker suggested that we watch it in your room because it would be better for you back to be in bed rather than staying on the couch," said Brennan, her head being propped up by her hand. "Is this okay with you?"

"Sure," he said nonchalantly, swearing that his voice squeaked as he handed Brennan the popcorn and Parker the juice boxes. "Everyone comfy?"

"Very," hummed Brennan. "This bed is quite conducive to relaxation. I can imagine how much you spent on it."

"Well, can't expect you to fix my back all the time, can I?" Booth beamed his charm smile at her while he crawled in to bed on the other side of Parker. Brennan almost found herself volunteering to do just that. She felt relieved that in her shy smile Booth couldn't see the scenarios that she imagined inspired by his harmless statement.

"What are we watching?" asked Booth, reaching over Parker with one of his muscular arms to get some popcorn from the bowl Brennan was holding.

"Superman Returns," answered Parker as he dutifully readied the juice boxes by puncturing them with the accompanying straw. "Its one of our favorites."

"Then I look forward to watching it with you." accepting her juice box with a smile.

Both adults sighed in contentment at this domestic moment as Parker pressed play, a sly smile on his face.


	3. The Morning After

**A/N: I know, I'm a bad, bad author. I tried to update this story, but because of the meds I was on, none of it made sense. It was highly entertaining but mostly incoherent. Haven't been able to write anything decent since I updated "Tell you something". Sorry. I am on the road to recovery (with a few detours for good measure. What doesn't kill you makes you want to sue someone, or requires therapy, or something to that effect) so hopefully I'll be better at updating now. **

**Heartfelt thanks to everyone who has reviewed/alerted/favorited any of my stories. To those precious few who have alerted/favorited/reviewed all of my stories-you have my heart. Would appreciate it if you sent it back to me when you're done with it. I use it in a juggling act that I do for my family when we all get together. To 2BBornot2BB, had to break up the chapter in two. The part I told you about is coming up. Thanks also to all of those who sent me prayers and well wishes-words can't express how much they mean to me.**

**Disclaimer: While under the influence of pain meds, I have pretended to be Hart Hanson, but I've never claimed that I owned Bones or any of its characters. The meds were good, but not that good. Just say no kids.**

**The Morning After**

"What did you think of the movie Bones?" asked Parker, as he lay with his head on her shoulder.

"It was quite entertaining," she smiled down at the little boy. "However..."

"That's like the adult version of 'but', right?" he asked his father who responded with a chuckle and a nod.

"Alright, I accept that his alien physiology would perhaps allow for his superhuman strength and abilities," mused Brennan. "But, the issue that I have the most trouble resolving is the fact that Lois Lane - the woman that Superman had a child with and has some sort of emotional connection to him - was unable to recognize that he and Clark Kent are the same person? She is supposed to be an independent, intellectual and observant woman who won awards for her journalism, how is it possible that she is unable to recognize that Clark and Superman have identical physiology and facial features as well as skeletal markers? How is it believable that when Clark Kent dons eyeglasses and a suit, he's no longer recognizable as Superman?"

"Maybe she doesn't want to see it," proposed Parker. "With Superman, it's obvious why she's in love with the guy-he's awesome, he's a superhero and he's cool and mysterious and everything, but he's usually only around whenever she's in trouble because he's off somewhere saving the day. Maybe she's so obsessed by him that she doesn't even really look at any other guy, even Clark. Clark is the boring guy who's like, just her friend, who she works with and sees every day, but he's not cool as Superman. Honestly, he's kinda dorky too. He acts like the opposite of Superman on purpose so that even Richard thinks for a second that Clark looks like Superman, but then he does something weird and then Richard thinks that Clark can't be Superman."

"That still doesn't explain how reasonably intelligent, perceptive people seem to abandon these faculties when a disguise as simple as a pair of glasses are employed." argued Brennan. "Especially Lois Lane, since she is purported to be the person with emotional ties to Superman and has spent the most time with him and she works closely with Clark."

Booth was about to intervene and remind Brennan that this was just a movie and Parker was just a kid when he says something that surprises both of the adults.

"Maybe sometimes adults can't see what's right in front of them, especially when it comes to love." Mused Parker.

Just when Booth was about to marvel in the wisdom of Parker's words and where he could have come up with something like that, Parker reverted to childhood and begged his father to let him stay up and watch one more movie.

"Please Dad?" Parker pleaded. "Just one more and I promise that I'll sleep early tomorrow-pinkie swear!"

"Parker, it's already way past your bedtime," Booth pointed out. "If we're going to the zoo tomorrow, we have to get up early and I don't want you to complain the whole day how tired you are."

"I won't, I promise," Parker swore solemnly. "Besides, I wanted to watch something educational. Could we watch Earth Story, please Dad? Bones, you'll love it! It's a documentary about different animal species and stories about them. Can we watch it?"

"It's really up to your father," smiled Brennan at his enthusiasm. At seeing his face fall slightly when she didn't immediately acquiesce, she decided to give him just a little support. "I am intrigued by the premise of the movie though."

Caving under the weight of pleading looks from Parker and Brennan, Booth sighed, and Parker quickly scrambled off the bed and ran to the living room to retrieve the discs. While he was gone, Booth took the opportunity to say something to Brennan.

"Bones, thanks for doing this," Booth said, giving her a warm smile while he tried to ignore just how close they lay next to each other on his bed. "Thanks for staying and watching movies with us."

"No need to thank me," she replied, attempting to keep under control her own biological reactions to his proximity. "I find myself enjoying 'movie night'."

"Maybe we should do this more often then." Booth half joked, half prayed to God that she would accept.

"I'd like that," Brennan smiled shyly. "However, I am unsure of how Catherine would react to that idea."

"Found it!" Parker announced, skittering into the room and switching out the discs in the DVD before scrambling up on the bed. "I also brushed my teeth in case I fall asleep."

"Good job bub." said Booth, kissing the top of Parker's head as the boy snuggled between him and Brennan.

"If you're anticipating falling asleep during the movie, doesn't that mean you expect the movie to be boring?" asked Brennan.

"No," Parker shook his head. "It's just late and even though I really like this movie, I am a little sleepy. Just a little though."

"Hey guys," Booth interrupted. "Why don't we cut the chit chat and watch the movie."

He pressed play on the DVD remote and soon they were entranced by the cute little animals and their stories. Not long into the movie though, Parker-who had been fighting to keep his eyes open, succumbed to the sweet song of slumber. The adults stayed up longer, but were sound asleep before the end of the movie. Some time in the middle of the night, Parker woke up and looked upon the dozing figures of his father and the woman he knew would one day become his stepmom, and he smiled. As noiselessly and as gently as he could, he climbed out from between them, easing himself off of the bed.

"Where you goin' bud?" his father sat up and muttered sleepily, his super sniper senses activated.

"Just to the bathroom dad." Parker whispered so that he didn't wake Brennan up.

" 'Kay." Booth murmured before laying back down.

Parker waited until he heard his father breathing deeply before he crept to the door, and looked back at the couple that he left on the bed. With a smile, he noticed how in sleep they reached out for each other, and the space that Parker once occupied was quickly taken by the two of them as they reached out for one another and curled up against each other. Parker stifled a giggle and quietly shut the door behind him.

The next morning, Booth awoke from the best sleep he had ever had. As he slowly edged towards consciousness, he called upon his other senses to give him vital information concerning his surroundings before he opened his eyes. It was a habit left over from his years in the military, one that he still found useful to this day.

He took a deep breath and as his nose was tickled by the long tendrils of hair covering the pillow that his head rested upon, he found himself inhaling a familiarly captivating aroma. It was simple and clean and refreshing with just a hint of sweetness, not overly flowery or fruity or cloying. Even though it was a scent that was fairly popular, no one seemed to be able to wear it like she did. Maybe it was her natural pheromones or hormones or whatever that combined with the smell of cucumber and melon that made it smell so good. All he knew was how hard it was not to be distracted when that particular fragrance wafted through the air. Every time she was near him it took all of his willpower for him not to bury his face in her neck to see if the scent was even more intoxicating up close.

His sense of hearing demanded attention next. On this particular morning, he didn't wake to the sounds of the city street outside of his window, or cartoons being played on the living room TV entertaining Parker while he waited for his father to get up. Instead, the first thing he heard was the soft, slow cadence of someone in deep sleep. Someone who was sleeping right beside him with her body pressed up against his. That was when he noticed that his left arm had become numb from being curled under his pillow as it supported his head. His other arm was draped over something. Something soft and warm that seemed to undulate underneath his bicep, while his forearm and right hand seemed to be tangled in something. No, not tangled - intertwined between two other hands that belonged to someone else. Hands that were delicate and soft, despite the light callouses on the pads and base of each of the fingers. Hands that he knew could either move with an entrancing fluidity or a fierce and unexpected power. He didn't experience the touch from those hands often, but the few times that he did was burned into his memory.

He didn't need to open his eyes to know that he was curled up in his bed next to his Bones. He tried to tell himself to wipe the smirk of his face before she woke up and punched it off for him. That maybe it was just a dream, a really incredibly vivid dream, and when he opened his eyes it was more likely that he'd find a pillow next to him instead of her, but he couldn't help himself. Granted, he did dream more than he really should about waking up next to her, but this time felt so real. And she wasn't just draped over him, they were spooning and her fingers were locked with his as she held his hand close to her chest. This had to be real. And perhaps she had just reached out subconsciously after a bad dream, but the point was - she was here next to him where she belonged. Maybe when she woke up, things might be a little awkward between them and the smart thing to do was to move away before then and spare them the embarrassment. At that very moment though, he just couldn't do it. 'Just five more minutes' he told himself. Five more minutes of indulging in the fantasy that he could wake up like this for the rest of his life, his hand wrapped in hers, his arm over her body as she nestled against him...

It was then he realized that even before his senses were awakened, there was a specific part of his anatomy that had already been roused. And that part was pressing up against Brennan. He groaned inwardly knowing that he couldn't afford five more minutes. If Brennan woke up curled against him with his morning wood poking at her, awkwardness would be the best case scenario.

Booth tried as gently as he could to extricate his hand from Brennan's, but at the slightest movement, she groaned, tightened her grip on his hand and snuggled further into him. With a slight gasp, he was torn between enjoying the sensation of her practically grinding against him and trying to figure out how to get out of this situation without waking her and having to explain himself. Even worse, what if Parker decided to burst into the room at that moment? What would the poor kid think? Parker made it obvious how much he wanted Bones to be Booth's girlfriend, hell-Booth wanted that just as badly, but he had to be realistic. Bones agreed to Parker's demands because she was convinced that it was the only way to demonstrate to Parker that she and Booth weren't meant to be together. She didn't even come up with a plan to show Park that it wasn't going to work. Maybe she did have one in mind and she just hadn't gotten a chance to let Booth in on it, or maybe she believed that their differences would naturally divide them without them having to do anything more than be themselves. That thought saddened him, and he briefly wondered if it were true.

He heard Brennan mutter something, bringing him back to his current dilemma. Without moving his hand or upper body, he eased his lower half away from her. He managed to gain just enough space to keep things almost respectful. Problem was that his little soldier was still standing at attention.

Horrified at the thought of her waking up and seeing him like this, he prayed, and in his head ran through the litany of saints hoping that one would help him. Instead, his erection stayed defiantly strong and Brennan once again seemed to be attempting to back into him.

"Great, just great," he thought to himself. "If she only knew what she does to me without even trying, not to mention when she's actually awake."

He sighed to himself and tried to think of something, anything that would...take the wind out of his sails, so to speak. Booth need only reflect on a case they had not to long ago, in which a victim was found in a hotel's industrial washer. The sex of the victim was evident when Cam found a part of him that Booth mistook for an eye. When he found out what that organ really was, he cringed in empathy just as any other man would have done when the family jewels are affected. On top of that, Bones just had to go into detail about injuries to the testicles while they were having lunch with Sweets at the diner. All that stuff about it being twisted, and degloving, it's enough to make any guy limp. Unless of course you had the woman of your dreams in your bed rubbing her perfect posterior against you, then you end up with a titanium hard on, capable of resisting any attempts to mentally take it down. There was only one way to get rid of it now, and there was no way that he was going to do _that_ in bed while she lay next to him.

Brennan's subconscious wriggling almost had her up against him again, and he was already close to the edge of the bed. If he was going to make a move, it had to be done soon.

His desperate mind came up with the idea to yank his hand away, kinda like a band aid. Maybe rather than just trying to wriggle his hand out of her grasp, he should give it a hard tug. Maybe, in her slumbering state she won't be able to hold onto it and he'd be free. And even if it did wake her up, all it would take was four quick strides and he'd be in the bathroom. She'd be rubbing her eyes trying to figure out what was going on, and by the time he came out of the bathroom, he'd have ensured that Little Sarge was able to 'stand down' and come up with something to tell Brennan if she asks what happened. Okay, maybe it wasn't the best plan, but that was all his blood starved brain could come up with at the moment. He took a breath and yanked his hand back.

Unfortunately, he underestimated how entwined their fingers were, how strong Brennan's grip would be and how close he was to the edge of the bed. He lost his balance and found himself falling to the floor, followed by a startled Brennan who landed on top of him, knocking the wind out of him.

"Booth, what the-" growled Brennan sleepily before she noticed something that temporarily shocked her into silence. "Booth, is that your-"

"Dad, Bones, are you-" Parker called out before bursting into the room. He took one look at Booth and Bones, his eyes widening before he clamped a hand over his eyes as he tried to back out of the room. "I'm sorry! I know that I should've knocked before I came in - but I heard a loud noise and I thought someone got hurt and I-"

"Parker, it's not what you think..." muttered Booth, attempting to get up but failing when Brennan refused to get off of him. Not that Little Sarge minded of course.

"Booth, you can't blame Parker for believing that he was interrupting us in the middle of sex," replied Brennan, her hair still mussed from sleep as she lay atop him. "With the way we're positioned-"

"Parker-livingroom. Now." ordered Booth. Seeming relieved, Parker practically ran to do as he was told, closing the door behind him.

"Booth-" Brennan began, her earnest face inches away from him and Booth found himself getting lost in the grey blue expanse of her eyes.

Before he said or did anything stupid like give into the impulse to take her face in his hands and kiss her senseless, he scrambled out from underneath her.

"Sorry Bones, have to go to the bathroom." he muttered, making a dash for the temporary sanctuary that he mentioned.

He was in the bathroom for only a couple of minutes, trying to take care of Little Sarge when he heard someone knock on the door.

"Booth, we need to talk."


	4. But I Won't Do That

**A/N: Believe it or not, I'm still somewhat around. Sorry it took me so long to update, but life's kicking my arse right now. To make up for it I'll keep the note short, and I made this chapter really long. Actually, this was just supposed to be a transitional chapter that somehow grew into a monster. Hope y'all like it.**

**Thanks to all those who've read/favorited/alerted/reviewed any/all of my stories. You're the cherry in my pie. To 2BBornot2BB and Boneslover10, don't worry, they will make it to the zoo. Soon. I hope.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bones or any of its characters. Which, considering how long its taking me to update, is a good thing.**

**I Would Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)**

"Booth, we need to talk." Brennan exclaimed as she knocked on Booth's bathroom door.

"Just a sec." grunted Booth, teetering on the verge of release.

"What are you doing?" asked Brennan curiously.

"I'm _using_ the _bathroom_," growled Booth. "Could you look in on Parker for me please?"

Somewhat irritated that she and Booth haven't yet discussed how they managed to fall out of bed together, Brennan went over to Parker's room to find it empty, the bed neatly done. She searched the living room next, expecting to see him watching the kind of cartoons that Booth also enjoyed but he wasn't there either. An unexpected noise brought her into the kitchen where she found Parker gathering ingredients from the cupboards.

"What are you planning to make Parker?" asked Brennan curiously.

"Oh, I was just getting the stuff to make Pops' famous fluffy pancakes," announced Parker. "Pops used to make them for the church breakfast every Sunday in the old neighborhood until he moved here. Pops taught Dad how to make it, and Dad taught me-but I'm not allowed to use the stove by myself yet. I was going to set everything up and wait until dad was up, but would you like to help me? It's a secret family recipe, I can teach it to you if you want."

"If it's a secret family recipe, will you get into trouble for teaching it to me?" grinned Brennan.

"You're family Bones, why would I get in trouble for teaching it to you?" scoffed Parker. "Come on, let's get breakfast going."

A few minutes later, feeling a little more relaxed Booth strolled into his kitchen to see his son assisting Brennan with breakfast. The domestic scene was heartwarming, though another emotion nudged its way to the forefront as he noted how Brennan was clad in nothing but his shirt. She was swimming in his old FBI tee, though it managed to cover up more than what she arrived at his apartment with, it was still short enough to show a sinful expanse of her long legs. And of course, as she was reaching for the dishes in his cupboard, the shirt she wore rode up tantalizingly.

He had just gotten Little Sarge under control, he didn't need this right now.

"Bones, what happened to the pants I leant you?" his voice sounding strangled, as in his mind he ran through every prayer he remembered from Sunday school.

"They were too big," she shrugged, her attention on the pancake that she was flipping. "My legs kept getting tangled whenever I turned in my sleep so I took them off. I usually don't wear much clothing when I go to bed."

A groan escaped from Booth's lips as he fought to push away the images of Bones scantily dressed in his bed and grinding up against him. He shut his eyes tight and a few deep breaths later he managed to regain control, only to find a concerned Brennan holding his face tenderly in her hands, her eyes scanning him for clues to his reaction.

"Booth, are you alright?" asked Brennan, worry etched over the classic features of her face.

"M'fine," Booth muttered, gently pulling her hands from his face.

"Are you sure?" pressed Brennan, reluctantly moving away from him and turning back to the stove. "I know that you're more adept than I am at discerning cues from facial expressions, but you did look quite pained a moment ago."

"Just felt a little pinch in my back from falling off the bed, that's all," he half lied. Landing on his back didn't exactly tickle, but he probably wouldn't feel the full effects of that until later. "I'll be okay."

"You sure you're okay dad?" asked Parker anxiously, setting the table. "If your back is hurting, we don't have to go to the zoo."

"I'll be okay Bud," smiled Booth, grabbing the orange juice from the fridge and taking a seat at the table. He felt like a jerk for making his kid worry. "Besides, you and me are going to show Bones an awesome time at the zoo, aren't we?"

"Yeah!" cheered Parker, taking a seat across from his father, leaving the seat beside Booth to Brennan.

"Do you need me to realign your back?" offered Brennan, plating the last pancake and turning off the stove. "Or perhaps just a massage would help?"

"Maybe later," replied Booth, knowing that as good as that would feel, having Brennan's hands on him would only exacerbate the real problem. "We wouldn't want these amazing pancakes to get cold, would we? They look and smell great by the way. Are these Pops famous fluffy pancakes?"

"Yeah," admitted Parker proudly. "Bones and I made them together. I taught her how to make it the way you taught me."

"Thanks guys, I can't wait to dig in." Booth replied, giving Brennan a warm smile.

"They do appear to be quite appetizing." Brennan replied, returning Booth's grin.

"Well, the sooner we finish breakfast, the sooner we get to the zoo, right?" said Booth, pumping Parker and taking the seat across from him.

"We do have to go to my place so that I can change clothes," Brennan reminded Booth as she sat beside him. "Unless you think that I should just wear your clothes to the zoo."

Parker laughed hysterically at Brennan's joke, while Booth merely chuckled, marveling at the woman beside him. If someone told him five years ago that Dr Temperance Brennan would be his partner, his best friend, get along so well with his son and be able to tell a joke that would have a nine year old in stitches, he wouldn't have believed it.

"What? Do I have syrup on my chin?" asked Brennan, noticing Booth's stare.

"Just a little," Booth said, reaching out and wiping away the offending drop. "All better."

"Thanks." Brennan breathed, noting to herself that quite often Booth did strive to make things better for others.

"Anytime." Booth grinned at her. He felt himself leaning into her, losing himself for a moment in her eyes and drawn in by the smile she returned.

"We should finish our breakfast," muttered Brennan, interrupting the moment. "as you said, the sooner we finish breakfast, the sooner we get to the zoo."

Their breakfast was eaten in companionable silence, and when it was done, they worked quickly together to clean up the remains. There was no bumping into each other or trying to get around one another. It felt oddly effortless how they managed to work as a team to clear the table and load the dishwasher, almost as if their movements had been choreographed and practiced for years. When the kitchen was restored to its former glory, Booth went to go get dressed while Parker went to change, leaving Brennan in the living room to wait for them.

Parker emerged from his room wearing his favorite black converse high tops, a pair of black board shorts and the grey Jeffersonian Medico Legal Lab shirt that the team had gotten him a few weeks ago. They gave him honorary squint status for his frequent visits to the lab, to Booth's chagrin. Parker loved the shirt, and wore it as often as he could.

"I'm all ready Bones!" Parker announced.

"I can see that," smiled Brennan, observing his outfit. "all we have to do now is wait for your father."

Parker noticed Brennan stealing glances at Booth's bedroom door and fidgeting, and hid a grin.

"What's wrong Bones?" asked Parker, as if he didn't already have his suspicions.

"Nothing," she denied while running a glance past his door again. "There's just something I have to speak to your father about, and I was wondering when we'd be able to talk."

"Is it about a case?" inquired Parker. "Because if it's something that I'm not supposed to hear, maybe you should talk to him before we go to the zoo. He's going to want me to stay beside you guys the whole time we're there. He's a little paranoid when it comes to places where there's a lot of people, lots of places to get lost and lots of exits."

"So, should I go talk to him now?" asked Brennan hesitantly.

"No time like the present." Parker shrugged. He bit his lip to keep from laughing as Brennan tapped on his Dad's door and went inside.

Booth was humming to himself as he tossed his shirt and sweatpants into his clothes hamper. Okay, the morning started out so-so with him waking up next to Brennan, only to have them tumble out of bed together, and not in the way he pictured that would happen, but he was eager to see what the rest of the day would bring. He couldn't think of a better way to spend the day than with his son and Bones.

His humming turned into a cheery whistling as he decided to take a quick shower. To time himself, he sang the first verse and the chorus of hot blooded before shutting off the taps and grabbing a towel. He quickly patted himself dry, and as he headed back to his bedroom to get dressed, he returned to humming, using his towel to vigorously rub his hair to dry it. His cheery thoughts and upbeat mood, not to mention his current state of nakedness left him vulnerable to what would happen next.

"Can we talk now Booth?" he heard a voice ask from somewhere in his room.

"Bones, what the hell?" he yelled, his hands flying to cover himself up, awkwardly attempting to wrap his towel around him.

"Oh come on Booth, I've already seen you naked." smirked Brennan, enjoying the view.

"Don't remind me." grumbled Booth, feeling as though the towel wasn't covering enough of him.

"You're not embarrassed are you?" asked Bones, clearly amused by the situation. "You shouldn't be, despite your horrendous eating habits, you have quite an impressive physique. It's obvious that you adhere to a rigorous fitness regimen."

"Uh...thanks Bones." Booth blushed, unaccustomed to Brennan staring at him. "Mind if I get dressed?"

"Not at all." Brennan replied, taking a seat on the edge of his bed.

"A little privacy Bones?" plead Booth, motioning with his head towards the bedroom door.

"Booth, we need to discuss what happened this morning, as well as other issues pertinent to the agreement that we made last night," Brennan pointed out. "and I doubt that you would want Parker to be involved in our conversation. Since we have agreed to take him to the zoo, I don't foresee another opportunity to talk in private today."

"All right," sighed Booth, knowing that she wasn't going to let it go, and if he didn't have a talk with her now she very well could bring the subject up while Parker was in earshot. "Could you at least turn around so that I can get my clothes on?"

"Fine," she relented, turning to face the door. "Better?"

"Perfect," he said wryly, quickly slipping on a pair of black boxer briefs. "What did you want to talk about?"

"What happened this morning Booth?" she asked bluntly. "Why did you pull me out of bed?"

"I did not pull you out of bed! I..." Booth muttered, unsure what to say. Finally deciding that directness was his best course of action, he continued. "When I woke up, you were holding my hand in both of yours. I had to go to the bathroom, and I tried to ease my hand away, but you had a tight grip on it. So, I thought that maybe if I yanked my hand back, your grip would loosen and I could get my hand free, only I lost my balance, you still had a hold on my hand and _we fell_ out of bed."

"I was holding your hand?" repeated Brennan.

"Yeah," admitted Booth. "But you were asleep, so you probably weren't conscious of it, right?"

"Of course not," scoffed Brennan. "as you've stated, when you're asleep, you don't react to things the same way than when you're awake."

"Yeah, sure." grinned Booth cockily, sparing a glance at her over his shoulder as he slipped on a pair of jeans. He could tell by the tone of her voice and the way she shifted slightly while she sat how uncomfortable she was at the idea of clinging to him in sleep. He wondered what she would say if he told her she was grinding herself against him as well.

"Where was Parker?" asked Brennan. "I thought that it was his idea to have a sleep over?"

"I kinda remember him getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom," Booth recalled. "he probably went to the bathroom in the hall instead of using my bathroom. He considers it his bathroom because it's right next to his room. He probably just went straight to his room afterwards."

Brennan nodded her acceptance of his explanation before posing another question. "What about Catherine?"

"What about Catherine?" asked a puzzled Booth, as he threw on a vintage Flyers shirt.

"When do you plan to tell her about our arrangement?" Brennan clarified, turning to face Booth, believing that she had given him ample time to change. She was forced to bite back a hum of appreciation upon noticing how Booth's shirt seemed to skim over his powerful pectoral muscles, floating over the well developed abdominal muscles that she knew lay underneath. She acknowledged to herself that Booth was just as pleasing to look at while dressed casually as he did in a suit. Her eyes drifted over to his chiseled deltoids and down the short sleeve of his shirt noting how the material strained against his sculptured biceps as she listened absentmindedly to what he was saying until a few key words caught her attention.

"You and Catherine broke up?"

"Catherine and I are taking a break," Booth corrected, leaning against his dresser. He saw the way that she was looking at him and he couldn't help himself. He crossed his arms over his chest and smirked at her reaction. "Bones, are you listening to what I'm saying, or are you just staring at my body?"

"Of course I'm listening," Brennan bristled even as her cheeks took on a rosy hue. "and I am _not_ staring at your body, I was objectively admiring your musculature-purely from a physiological standpoint."

"Oh, from a physiological standpoint, of course." Booth replied smugly.

"What did you mean when you said that you and Catherine are on a break?" Brennan inquired, attempting to change the subject.

"She has some personal stuff that she has to sort out," replied Booth. He could see through Brennan's attempts, but rather than pressing her he decided to let it go - for now. "That's what we were discussing at dinner last night. She's going to go to Maine for a week, for her cousin's wedding. She wants that time to figure out some things."

"Are you okay?" asked Brennan, worry evident in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine," nodded Booth, touched by Brennan's concern. "I have some stuff that I have to sort out too."

"What stuff?"

"Personal stuff," shrugged Booth, taking a seat beside Brennan. "Neither of us are sure about whether or not we want to go forward with our relationship. I mean, she's great and we have fun together, but I guess that we both have feelings for other people that we haven't entirely gotten over yet."

Booth didn't mean to tell her that, and he was afraid that his confession would trigger an emotional lockdown in Brennan, so he tried to change tacks and the subject as well.

"Hey, you know, we'd better get going-"

"Booth, about our arrangement with Parker," Brennan began hesitantly, making Booth a little nervous. "I'd like to make a few amendments to it."

"Okay," he hedged, wondering where she was going with this and if he was going to like it. "What kind of amendments?"

"Booth, as a scientist, I don't gamble, or take chances," she started, hoping that Booth was going to be able to follow her train of thought. "however, it is a basic scientific principle that in order for advancements to be made, calculated risks must be taken."

"I'm sorry Bones, but I don't get what you're trying to say." replied Booth, looking confused.

"Let me explain this way," Brennan paused to take a breath and reorganize her thoughts. "what if we considered this week a social experiment? We interact as a couple, note the difficulties in balancing a personal life with our professional lives, and make adjustments where needed. At the end of the week we assess the results, and make a determination on the viability of you and I endeavoring to remain in a romantic relationship or whether we should return to being merely friends and partners."

"Wait a minute, are you telling me that you think that you and I should be together, as in a couple?" Booth asked, caught off guard.

"For a week," clarified Brennan. "We would need to create parameters, or boundaries in order to prevent any miscommunications between the two of us, as well as maintain an open dialogue. That is, if you're amenable to these changes."

"Boundaries?" Booth repeated numbly, feeling like he had just been dropped into the Twilight Zone. Was he or wasn't he in a relationship with Brennan?

"Yes, boundaries are required to reduce the incidences of misunderstanding and ill feelings," Brennan explained. "For instance, while we are working on a case-whether in the field, at the lab or at the Hoover-we will maintain a professional demeanor. There will be no public displays of affection or discussions about issues occurring in our personal lives. Do you understand?"

"When we're on the job, we concentrate on the job," clarified Booth. "Yeah, I got it."

"Also, I believe that for the time being, we should refrain from telling others about our social experiment," remarked Brennan. "Especially the members of our team, it would only serve as a distraction at the lab. Do you agree?"

"Sure." Booth nodded, still trying to figure out what was going on.

"And of course, simply because we're dating doesn't mean that you have the right to treat me as your property nor should it be used as an excuse to act as an overprotective alpha male around other men." declared Brennan. "Even though we both acknowledge that we do intend on exploring a monogamous relationship."

"Of course." said Booth, feeling as though some of what she was saying starting to sink in.

"Good," smiled Brennan, seeming relieved. "I believe that if by outlining these rules in advance, the experiment will proceed more smoothly."

"Okay, let me get this straight," paused Booth, taking a moment to organized his jumbled thoughts. "you're proposing a trial relationship instead of just agreeing to Parker's idea to prove him wrong?"

"Precisely," nodded Brennan brightly, until a sudden realization caused doubt to flash across her features. "Unless, your hesitance is indicative of your disinterest in pursuing a romantic relationship with me. Am I right?"

"Absolutely not," Booth reassured her, reaching out and taking her hand in his. "you're a genius, you've probably figured out that the woman I still have feelings for is you. The thing is, a couple of months ago I asked you to take a chance on us, and you said no. What changed Bones?"

"Reflecting upon that night and my reaction to what you said, there are certain things that I did not take into account," Brennan began, avoiding Booth's gaze. "While you did warn me that you intended to move on, I did not anticipate my emotional response to the reality of you finding someone with whom you intended to attempt a relationship with. You and I spent so much time together that it was difficult for me to adjust to you spending your free time with Catherine. I tried to be happy for you, happy that you found a good woman that you could make you happy, but I wasn't. That makes me sound like a horrible person, doesn't it?"

"What I heard was that you missed spending time with me and that you were jealous of Catherine," teased Booth. "That didn't sound bad to me at all."

"Booth, I did not say that I was jealous," she said, swatting him playfully on the shoulder. "There are still critical issues that we would need to address if we were to pursue a romantic relationship, not the least of which is the fact that neither of us have been in a successful long term relationship."

"Maybe it's because we were with the wrong people," he pointed out. "Besides, if either of us were currently in a successful long term relationship, we wouldn't have a chance to be together now, would we?"

When the look on her face told him that Bones conceded his point, Booth inched closer to her, hoping to sell to her the idea that she actually proposed. One week could be all he needs to show her just how amazing they could be. One week could be the start of the rest of their life together.

"Bones, I still believe in giving us a chance, and I'm confident that we can work through any problems that we might face, as long as we work through it together. And I know that you're still apprehensive about it, of what it would mean to our friendship, to our partnership. You're scared that if we pursue a romantic relationship it'll change everything. And most likely it will, but change doesn't have to be bad. And that's what I intend to show you this week. If setting rules and boundaries makes you feel more comfortable about what's going on between us, then bring on the rule book. I only have two rules to add to it."

"What are your rules?" asked Brennan curiously.

"First rule: when we're off the job, we're off the job," insisted Booth. "Just like your rule about being professional at work, when we're not working we don't talk about work; especially when we're with Parker."

"What if we're assigned an important case and time is of the essence?" Brennan frowned.

"With the work we do, of course there'll be exceptions," Booth accepted. "But, even then we have to make sure that we leave some time to unwind and be together. Make sure that there's a balance between work and play."

"We'll be playing?" teased Brennan, inching closer to Booth. "I wasn't aware that you were interested in-"

"That brings me to rule number two," replied Booth, leaning slightly away from her. He couldn't believe he was actually going to say this to her. He was already regretting it even before he spoke the words, but they had to be said.

"No sex." he blurted.

"What? But aren't sexual relations is an integral part to any romantic relationship?" argued Brennan. "Isn't sexual compatibility important in a relationship?"

"Yeah, but we're not having sex as some sort of experiment," Booth noted. "And I'm not saying that I don't want to...be intimate with you, because believe me I do. It's just that, for me-making love is about developing an intimate connection between two people. I just don't think that we should take that step unless we're both emotionally invested-unless it's real for both of us."

"What if we decide that the experiment is a success," Brennan "and that it would be acceptable for us to be involved a romantic relationship in addition to our professional partnership, then would we continue to not have sex?"

"I hope not, I'm not even sure that I could last a whole week," Booth half joked. "I'm just saying that, if and when it happens for us, it should be because it's more than just sex, and it's more than just about playing at being a couple for a week. It should happen because we're both equally invested in this, that we're ready to deepen our bond through physical intimacy. Do you get what I'm saying?"

"I understand Booth," sighed Brennan. "You see sex as more than simply relieving biological urges, and I respect that. I have to admit, I was looking forward to exploring your theories on making love and becoming one."

"You're making this as hard as you can, aren't you?" asked Booth, making Brennan chuckle at his poor choice of words.

"You can't blame a girl for trying." she laughed. "So does that mean that we shouldn't be physically demonstrative with one another?"

"By physically demonstrative you mean..." asked Booth slyly, getting the gist of what Brennan was saying, but wanting to be sure. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her off before they even had a chance.

Brennan considered her next action carefully, though it only took her a moment to think things through. This was all so new to her-actively endeavoring to enter into a monogamous relationship, especially with someone like Booth, someone who was her partner and also one of her best friends. Although there was a certain amount of risk involved in becoming romantically involved with Booth, she was beginning to understand that she can't expect things to always remain as they were. Things were changing, her best option was to change with them.

She hesitated for a brief moment before taking his face in her hands, leaning in and kissing him. Their kiss started off frantic and aggressive, with Brennan clearly in control. Mouths collided, hands roamed, tongues battled for dominance, and a soft whimper escaped from Brennan's lips as she hoped to change Booth's mind about his second rule. And then, Booth slowly began to take over.

He started to change the tempo of their kisses, they became more languid and leisurely, and yet somehow deeper and more intense. It was becoming increasingly difficult for her to maintain any sense of composure. As she heard herself moan, her fingers found the hem of his shirt and slipped underneath it.

"Whoa, Bones hold on a sec," muttered Booth, pulling away. "We can't do this."

"Is this because of your stupid rule?" Brennan grumbled, still holding onto him.

"Yeah, I'm starting to regret that," he sighed, getting off the bed and moving out of arms reach. "But even if we were to toss that rule out the window, we still have to remember that my son is out in the living room, waiting for us to take him to the zoo. And we still have to go by your place on the way to the zoo."

"You're right, we shouldn't keep him waiting." sighed Brennan, getting up from the bed and heading towards the door.

"Hey Bones?" Booth called out before Brennan opened the door. "Could you please put some pants on? There's only so much self control that I can muster."

Brennan turned around, grinned and sauntered past him to grab the jogging pants Booth had lent her. She made a show of bending down to pick them off the floor before getting up and leaving the room. Booth followed behind, wondering what he had gotten himself into.

As Parker waited for them, he sat on the sofa quietly watching TV when he heard the phone ring, and he ran to get it.

"Booth residence, Parker speaking." Parker answered quietly after the first ring, not wanting to disturb whatever was going on in his dad's bedroom.

"Hey Parker," Angela replied with a small smirk. "Is your Dad there? I need to talk to him for a sec."

"He's a little busy right now Ange," Parker said cryptically. "Can I take a message?"

"I'm sorry Parker, but I really need to talk with him right now," insisted Angela, worried about her friend. Brennan wasn't answering her home phone or her cell phone and she wasn't at the lab either. She was concerned and she knew that if anyone could find her best friend it was Booth. "Could you get him for me?"

"He's with Bones in his bedroom Angela, could it wait?" Parker whispered, looking towards his dad's bedroom door.

"Wait, say that again?" Angela asked, stunned at what Parker just said and all of the delicious implications. "Brennan is there...with Booth...in his bedroom?"

"Yeah." Parker replied, and Angela could hear the smile in his tone.

"Really?" Angela purred, smiling so hard her face hurt. "What I'd give to have a chit chat with them right now. What time did she get there because I've been calling her all morning?"

"She came over last night," replied Parker. "We watched movies in my Dad's room and she and I made breakfast together this morning. We're also supposed to go to the zoo. You know, when they're finished...talking."

"Oh god I hope they're doing more than talking," Angela muttered. "You didn't hear me say that, did you?"

"Hear you say that you hoped they were doing more than talking? Nope, didn't hear that at all." teased Parker.

"Smarty pants," remarked Angela. "Listen, the minute that Bren and Booth are finished...doing, whatever they're doing, could you tell Brennan to call me please?"

"Could she call you tonight Ange?" asked Parker. "We really have to get going or all of the street parking will be gone and we still have to drop by her place so she can change. I hope that her place isn't too far from the zoo, and I hope that she doesn't take too long and leave me and Dad sitting around while she gets dressed. I hate waiting around for girls to get dressed, it takes so long and it gets so boring and Bones doesn't have cable. I guess that Dad and I could just sit around and talk about stuff, but the stuff I want to talk about he says I can't talk about until I have armpit hair."

"Okay..." Ange replied, wondering what that mini diatribe was all about.

"Oops, gotta go," whispered Parker. "See you soon."

It wasn't until she heard a click and the dial tone that Angela figured out what Parker was hinting at. When she realized what he was implying and the clues he was trying to give her, she couldn't help but marvel at the cleverness of Baby Booth.

"Oh boy, are those two in trouble." she sniggered as she headed out the door.


	5. Keeps Getting Better

**A/N : Nope, I'm still around...somewhat. Musie went on vacation without me and she just came back. This chapter was supposed to be about the trip to the zoo, but the transitional beginning grew a life of it's own. Sorry. Next chap is going to be their actual trip to the zoo. Stay tuned.**

**Thanks to all of those patient people who continue to read my stories. Love you more than words can say. To those who are new to my scribbles, welcome and I hope you enjoy. **

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Bones or any of its characters. But I do have a birthday coming up, so keep your fingers crossed!**

**Keeps Getting Better**

While Brennan was in the bathroom, Parker suddenly volunteered to get a backpack ready for their excursion.

"Dad, I'm going to go get a backpack ready, 'kay?" announced Parker. "That way we have snacks and we don't have to spend so much on food at the zoo."

"Alright," nodded Booth. "That sounds like a good idea. Need help?"

"Nah, I got it." he declared, dashing into Booth's room to get his father's backpack. Despite Parker telling him that he wanted to do it on his own, Booth decided to give his son a hand. He gathered the bags of chips and the cookies from the cupboards that Parker wouldn't be able to reach and set them on the counter. Booth then filled up a couple of aluminum bottles with water and ice for them to drink from and laid them beside the snacks. After a few minutes, Parker came running into the kitchen with the backpack. Booth watched as his son carefully packed the food, even including a couple of apples and bagging some grapes as well.

When Brennan rejoined them in the living room, Booth lent her a pair of his slippers to wear and she asked about the backpack.

"It's our snack-pack," explained Parker. "I got us some stuff to eat in case we get hungry at the zoo, that way we don't have to figure out what we want from whatever's there. We already have food we like. I even brought fruits so we can eat healthier and because I know that you don't really like junk food."

"That's a very thoughtful of you Parker." praised Brennan.

"Dad says you should always think ahead." replied Parker with a grin.

"Excellent advice." smiled Brennan, speaking to Parker but looking at Booth.

"We gonna stand around and chat all day or are we gonna go to the zoo?" teased Booth, grabbing the backpack and noting that it was a little heavier than he expected, but he figured that Parker went a little overboard with the snacks so he said nothing.

"Let's go!" cheered Parker, taking a hold of Booth's and Brennan's hand as they all left together.

The ride to Brennan's was filled with excited chatter, and the three of them took turns doing impressions of their favorite animals. Brennan was quite impressed by Booth's impersonation of a gorilla, and she amazed them with her rendition of a wolf howl. By the time that they reached her building, they were all geared up for what Parker had dubbed "Funtastic Family Day". Brennan was enjoying herself so much that she decided not to correct Parker when he came up with the title, and for that she received an appreciative smile from Booth.

As soon as Booth parked, Brennan exited the Sequoia, promising not to take too long to get changed when Parker asked if he could go upstairs with Brennan.

"Parker, I won't be long," Brennan repeated her promise. "It will take approximately two minutes to get from the lobby of my building to my apartment, and then roughly five to seven minutes to find something appropriate to wear and change into it, and then another two minutes to return to the car. It should only take me between nine to eleven minutes to get back and then we can continue with our trip to the zoo."

"But I have to use the bathroom!" squirmed Parker.

"Didn't you go before we left?" Booth asked.

"I didn't have to go before we left," reasoned Parker. "May I please use your bathroom Bones?"

"Of course you may," smiled Brennan, opening up Parker's door for him while he unbuckled his seatbelt. "He can use the bathroom while I change. I don't anticipate us deviating too much from the timeline I've already set."

"Dad, you should come too," advised Parker, getting out of the car and taking hold of Brennan's hand. "the lines for the bathroom at the zoo are terrible."

"Parker, your father already used the bathroom at his place," reminded Brennan, not sure why Booth was suddenly blushing. "unless he has some sort of urinary tract infection, or bladder control issues, or-"

"That's a good idea Parker," interrupted Booth before Brennan delved into all of the possible illnesses he could have with excess peeing as one of the central symptoms. "Might as well use it while we're here."

The trio entered the apartment building together and chattered happily as they rode the elevator to Brennan's floor. Parker challenged the adults to a race, and once the doors opened he darted down the hall to Brennan's place, where a visitor was waiting for them.

"I win!" announced Parker, tagging the door to make his victory official before taking note of the person waiting amusedly by the door. "Oh hey Ange! What are you doing here?"

Angela took notice of the innocent look on Parker's face, saw the oblivious duo following behind him and decided to play along.

"I've been calling my best friend all morning, worried sick about her when she wouldn't answer her phone," replied Angela, giving Brennan a knowing look. "nice outfit by the way Brennan, where'd you get it?"

"These clothes aren't mine," Brennan blushed. "I borrowed them from Booth. Sorry to have worried you Angela. I forgot my cell phone at home."

With her cell phone, Angela took a picture of Brennan in Booth's clothes, smiled and said, "That almost makes up for it. Give me the details of how you ended up 'borrowing' Booth's clothes and all will be forgiven."

"Ange, we kinda have somewhere to be," Booth intervened. "maybe you and Bones could do this later."

Angela caught the grateful look Brennan gave him, and she was determined not to let this go easily.

"Is it important? I mean, are you guys rushing off to a crime scene or something," smirked Angela. "because as far as I know, we don't have any open cases and why would you be taking Parker with you?"

"We're going to the zoo!" Parker announced happily, bouncing up and down. "But Bones has to change and I have to use the bathroom."

"Aw, that's sooooo cute!" gushed Angela. "You guys are doing a family day together."

"Funtastic Family Fun Day." corrected Parker, still bouncing.

"Angela, I do have to change," reminded Brennan, pulling up the oversized sweatpants that were slipping off of her. "And Parker needs to use the bathroom, so if you don't mind..."

"By all means." Angela stepped out of the way to let Brennan unlock her door, but as soon as Bren and Parker stepped in she followed, with Booth trailing behind her.

"Excuse me, but I really have to go." Parker called out as he made a beeline for the bathroom.

"I guess that he wasn't kidding when he said that he had to go to the bathroom," Angela quipped before returning her attention to the mysterious duo. "So, I tried calling you all this morning. I even went by the lab-on a Saturday no less-without an open case to work on or any paperwork to catch up on. When you weren't at the usual places I rushed over here, my imagination working overtime, picturing all sorts of scenarios that would explain why you were suddenly so difficult to reach. Of course the one time I didn't imagine that you were with Booth, that's exactly where you were."

Angela could see the hesitant looks that they exchanged, and before they could come up with some sort of excuse or engage in their highly specialized form of hyper rationalization to explain whatever happened between them that Parker was hinting at, Ange barreled forward.

"Please don't give me that crap about you two being just partners again, okay?" sighed Angela in frustration. "Partners don't do...what you two do. Partners don't spend practically every minute of their free time together after spending their work day with each other. Partners don't stare longingly into each other's eyes and ignore everyone around them, and most of all, they don't go over to their partner's place and come home with different clothes. Unless something happened to the clothes that they were wearing."

The last sentence was less of a statement than it was a question as Ange waited for the answer.

"Nothing happened to the clothing I wore to Booth's place" replied Brennan. "but Booth thought that it was inappropriate to wear around Parker."

"Bones!" hissed Booth, his face turning red for all sorts of reasons.

"You're the one who said I was half naked," argued Brennan. "you asked me to 'cover up' and you handed me your leather jacket until I could borrow a shirt and sweat pants from you."

"What exactly were you wearing?" inquired Angela, thinking that this was even better than she thought.

"I was getting ready for bed when Parker called-"

"Bones, can I talk to you in private for a minute?" Booth interrupted, steering her towards her bedroom.

"Hold on a sec stud," said Angela, blocking their way. "Before you two retreat to the bedroom to hopefully do what you should have been doing for the past five years, I just have to know-what were you wearing?"

"I was wearing the black silk camisole and shorts set that you gave me for my birthday." Brennan replied unknowingly.

"Oh really," Angela said in a sing song voice. She grinned so hard she was going to need therapy to get that smile off her face. "you wore the slinky, silky, tiny little outfit that I gave you for your birthday to Booth's place? What a way to wake up, eh Booth?"

"Oh no, I went over last night." Brennan corrected her.

"God, this just keeps getting better!" Ange sighed happily.

"Okay, I'm all done," Parker exclaimed, bounding out of the bathroom. "hey Bones, why aren't you dressed?"

"She was about to." Booth answered, taking Brennan by the hand and heading down the hall.

"Why are you going with her dad?" Parker called out in a sweetly curious tone.

"To help her pick out something and get dressed faster." he replied before Parker and Ange heard a door shut.

"You mean get undressed faster," muttered Angela. "you didn't hear that."

"Not a word." giggled Parker.

"Good boy," laughed Angela, playfully mussing his hair up. She listened carefully and when she could hear their voices carrying down the hall, she decided it was safe enough to have a chat with Parker. "So little man, fill me in on what's going on. Don't pretend that it's nothing because I can sense a fellow matchmaker at work, so spill it. Tell me what you've got going with your dad and Bren, and I'll give you whatever tips and pointers that I can."

Parker gave her a lightning quick outline of what had happened so far and just enough of what he was planning to do. When he was finished, Angela couldn't help but marvel at this mini mastermind.

"Wow kid, you don't need any tips or pointers from me," she sighed in awe. "I could use some from you. Do you know how long we've been working at getting those two together and in one night you had them sleeping in the same bed together and agreeing to date for a week? Parker, if you ever figure out a way to make a career out of this you'll be rich before you get to high school."

"I just want my dad and Bones to be happy, and the only way that'll happen is if they're together," Parker shrugged modestly. Suddenly, he placed a finger to his lips requesting silence when Ange noticed that she couldn't hear them arguing anymore.

"I might need your help later. I'll let you know." Whispered Parker.

A few seconds later, Booth and Brennan emerged from her room. She was clad casually in dark jeans, and a loose white t-shirt, her hair tied back in a pony tail, but it was clear from the looks on her and Booth's face that getting dressed wasn't the only thing that they were up to in her room.

"Angela, there's something we want to tell you, but you have to promise not to tell anyone else." Brennan declared.

"Sure." she replied calmly, even though on the inside she was squealing like a banshee.

"Bones and I have decided to enter into a trial relationship for a week," explained Booth, wrapping an arm around Brennan. "We're going to see how it would work, what kind of complications we could run into, that kind of thing. And we don't want anyone else to know because-well first of all, it's no one else's business. Second, we really don't want to hear everyone else's opinion on it. Third-"

"If it doesn't work out, we wouldn't want the rest of the team to be distracted by our relationship status," Brennan continued. "Once the week is over and we assess the results of the trial relationship, if it's successful and a romantic relationship is viable and wouldn't detract from our professional lives, then we may choose to inform the others on the team. However, that is our decision to make Angela, not yours. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I understand." she shrugged, knowing that as soon as they were out of eyesight she'd text everyone she knew about this. She wouldn't be able to stop herself.

"Thanks Ange, we appreciate it." Booth smiled, knowing all the while that as soon as Ange was out of their sight she'd text and call everyone that she knew, she wouldn't be able to help herself. He wouldn't tell this to Brennan just yet. She was still anxious about this whole thing and knowing that everyone knew before she had made her mind up would only cause her to freak out unnecessarily. The good thing about Ange telling everyone was that she would make sure no one let on that they knew.

"Okay, well, I'm gonna go," Ange said as she grabbed her purse and her jacket. "I was going to go invite you out for a day of retail therapy, but since you're off to the zoo for your Funtastic Family Day, I'm gonna go drag my husband with me to go shopping. Have fun guys."

"You and Hodgins could come with us." Brennan offered.

For a second there, Ange thought it might be fun, until she caught a look in Parker's eyes that told her that wouldn't be helpful to Parker's plans.

"Nah," Ange shook her head lightly. "you go have fun with your family Bren. I'll talk to you later."

"Talk to you later Ange." smiled Brennan, giving her friend a brief hug.

"Since we're going anyway, we'll walk you down." offered Booth.

Brennan locked up, and the three of them walked with Angela to the elevator. She was floored by the sudden changes that she could see in Brennan and Booth. Bren seemed to laugh more freely, and Booth allowed himself the luxury of staring at her and casually touching her as much as he could without keeping his hands glued to her. Bren seemed to be reaching out to touch Booth more as well, and she got on amazingly with Parker. In fact, if she didn't know better she could have sworn they were the perfect family. She couldn't hold back the snicker as she wondered how they were going to keep the fact that they were together a secret from everyone else.

"Just remembering something that Jack told me," she replied when the three of them turned to look at her questioningly. "He's so funny."

"Yeah, when I think of Hodgins, I think comedian." scoffed Booth, who pretended to be winded when Brennan playfully backhanded him in the chest, making Parker laugh hysterically.

Once they got to the main floor, Angela continued to observe the burgeoning new family. Thing is, from the way that they were acting it was hard to believe that they weren't always this way. They looked comfortable around each other, but Brennan still seemed to be holding back a little. She'd look at Booth as though she wanted to reach out and touch him, but wasn't sure if she should. Parker skipped alongside her excitedly, chatting as they went. Upon closer inspection, Ange realized that Park was subtly navigating her towards Booth until they were almost shoulder to shoulder. Automatically, Booth reached out and laid a hand on the small of her back, warning Parker that he was practically bumping into Brennan. With the initial contact made by Booth, Brennan wound her arm around Booth's waist as Parker continued to skip alongside them, though now he managed to leave a little distance between him and the adults.

Angela wasn't parked too far away from them, so she waved goodbye from her car as she continued to watch them. They piled into Booth's Sequoia, and before he buckled up, Parker fiddled with the radio before settling into the back seat. Ange didn't doubt that it was part of his plan.

"The kid's a genius," she marveled before she too left the parking lot. "a young friggin' mastermind."


	6. Wild Thang

**A/N: Hey y'all, by some odd miracle I managed to get this in before the premiere. I was almost done with this chapter a week ago, but RL blindsided me with some bad news. Getting over it though, so don't worry if you are. Hope you like this. Thanks to all who have alerted/favorited and/or reviewed any of my stories. You lighten this author's heart.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bones or its characters. Would love to though.**

**Wild Thang**

"Dad, can we listen to something besides talk radio?" muttered Parker, crawling over the center console so that he could change the station. He pressed the scan button until Booth began to get a little frustrated at his son's station hopping.

"Parker, that's not a toy," Booth reminded him. "Pick a station will you?"

"It's not my fault that there's no good music," pouted Parker. "hey Dad, I grabbed your iPod just in case. It's in the front pocket of the backpack. Could you hook it up for me Bones? Just take the..."

Booth watched amusedly from the corner of his eye as Parker taught Brennan how to use the iPod FM transmitter using instructions like "attach the thingy to the hole by the other thingy" and demonstrating enthusiastically with hand gestures what was supposed to go where. For someone accustomed to giving and receiving very specific and precise directions, she did fairly well. As a reward, Parker gave her a high five before settling back in his seat and buckling up.

"Once it's in the thingy, you push that button over there, then that one," said Parker, pointing at the iPod. "and then you choose either by song, or by playlist, or by top 25 most played."

"Hey Bones, why don't I just-" Booth started as he reached over to take the iPod from her. She laughed, shifting the device out of his reach.

"I've got it," she said playfully. "besides, I want to see what kind of song selection you have. You were able to note my music preferences from my CD library, I want to know what kind of music you like."

"Fine," he retorted. "it's just that, some of the songs I have aren't really kid friendly, if you know what I mean."

"Oh," she mused in realization. "You mean, songs with curse words in their title? Such as this Dead Kennedys song 'Too drunk to'-"

"Yeah, like that one." Booth interrupted before she could read aloud the whole title.

"Don't worry, I won't play something that isn't 'kid friendly' as you say," she reassured him. "Besides, I'm looking for something in particular."

"What are you looking for?" asked Booth curiously, leaning towards Brennan until she pulled the iPod closer to her and shifted the screen so he couldn't see.

"I found it." she declared after pushing a couple of the buttons. A mischievous smile crept across her face as she waited for her selection to play.

"Is it alright if we play this song?" asked Brennan, as the familiar into began to blare through the speakers.

"Absolutely," Booth grinned at her. "it's an awesome song."

"I have to agree." Brennan smiled shyly at Booth as they locked eyes on each other.

"Are you two going to kiss?" Parker asked innocently. When the two adults turned their attention to him-Brennan with curiosity and Booth in consternation, Parker explained the reason for his question. "I mean, you are boyfriend and girlfriend now, right? Now when you look at each other like you want to kiss, you can actually kiss."

"He does have a point Booth." Brennan laughed, giving Booth a cheeky smirk.

"Oh he does, does he?" chuckled Booth. He leaned towards her, and at the same time he reached an arm out towards Parker and covered his son's eyes with his hand as he finished off the moment with Brennan properly. Their lips met in a soft and gentle kiss, with the promise of more to come. When they pulled away, Booth took his hand away from Parker's eyes and tucked a stray strand behind Brennan's ear, and without looking she pressed play on the iPod.

"Hey Dad, isn't this your favorite song?" asked Parker as he settled into the back seat, an all too familiar intro blaring through the speakers bringing grins to Booth's and Brennan's faces as began to bob their heads to the song that they both secretly acknowledged was their song. "He's always singing this song, and when he does, he always has a goofy smile on his face. Do you like this song Bones?"

"I do." she admitted happily. She and Booth exchanged a look before they began to sing along with the song.

"Hot blooded, check it and see..."

They sang along to a few more songs before they arrived at the side street that Booth usually parked on whenever he and Parker went to the zoo. To his chagrin, there were no spots left. They checked two more streets before he relented and parked on the lot. It was a beautiful day and it was understandable that the zoo would be busy, bustling with families who wanted to spend the day together checking out all of their favorite animals and watching their antics. Booth, Brennan and Parker seemed to fit right in.

They started off at the Great Cats exhibit, where they watched as the female Sumatran Tiger lay in the shade while the male Tiger swam around in the pool within their enclosure. Brennan informed the fascinated Booth boys that Tigers are among the few cat species that enjoy swimming.

"They often do so to alleviate the problem of bugs," said Brennan. "It also provides a relief from the heat, much like we as humans like to swim when it gets too hot."

"Whoa," marveled Parker. "How do you know that Bones? Do you know everything?"

"It's impossible to know everything Parker," she replied. "However, I am quite knowledgeable about a considerable number of topics. I'm very intellectually gifted."

"And also very modest," teased Booth, who pulled her closer to him so he could whisper in her ear "and incredibly beautiful."

She looked up at him, the surprise in her eyes melting into contentment as she was able to discern Booth's sincerity.

"You're quite handsome as well." she replied, wrapping an arm around his waist as they made their way to the lion enclosure.

When they got to the lion enclosure, there wasn't much to watch since the lion cubs and their mother weren't being exhibited yet, and the adult male and female lions were sleeping. Parker seemed slightly disappointed until Brennan pointed out that since lions are the largest predators in their habitat, they could sleep for longer periods of time without feeling threatened by other animals.

"So, you're saying that lions can sleep for so long because they're so fierce that other animals wouldn't be stupid enough to sneak up on them while they're sleeping?" asked Parker.

"Yes," confirmed Brennan with a smile, until a thought occurred to her. "Parker, is my speech too complex for you? Should I be speaking more plainly so that you can understand what I'm saying?"

"No Bones," Parker reassured her. "you're doing great, and I'm learning a lot from you today. Thank you."

"Yeah, thanks for teaching both of us Bones." Booth smiled warmly at her.

"It's my pleasure." Brennan said, returning their smile.

Taking Booth and Brennan's hand in each of his, Parker excitedly led them towards the Lemur Island, where they watched the ring tailed lemurs jump from branch to branch, their bushy tails swirling in the air to balance them. Then they went on to the Think Tank where Brennan explained to them the apparatus that the Orangutans were taught to use so that researchers could assess their memory and how they organize their memories.

"That's so cool!" exclaimed Parker, completely engrossed in watching the Orangutan utilizing the touch screen in order and getting rewarded with treats.

"It is very cool," agreed Brennan with a laugh. "At the beginning of the session, the orangutan is shown a variety of different pictures. It touches the screen to indicate that it has seen and taken note of the picture. When all of the pictures have been seen, the memory test commences. All of the pictures that have been seen appear on the screen in random order, along with pictures that weren't included in the original set. The orangutan is then required to touch the pictures that it remembers seeing in the original set in order to receive a treat. The computer records the order in which the orangutan touched the pictures and analyzes the data for patterns."

Brennan found that rather than his eyes glazing over at the amount of information she gave him, Parker's eyes were bright and alert, seeming to consider all that she was teaching him. She smiled at the boy, ruffling her hand through his hair as he turned his attention back to the orangutan.

"Enjoying our trip to the zoo Bones?" Booth asked, stepping closer to her and resting his hand on the small of her back.

"Very much." she nodded, smiling contently.

"Hey Dad, can we go to the Reptile Discovery Center?" asked Parker excitedly as they left the Think Tank, not noticing Brennan going pale at the mention of the exhibit.

"Why don't we go see the invertebrates instead Bud?" offered Booth, fully aware of Brennan's phobia. He knew that Parker idolized Brennan and he didn't want to embarrass her by pointing out her fears. "I heard that they have a giant octopus and hissing cockroaches!"

"But, it's on the way to the invertebrates and we always go to see the snakes!" Parker pointed out. "They're my favorite thing to see at the zoo!"

"Well then, you won't miss not seeing them on this trip," Booth said firmly. "Parker, we won't be able to see all of the exhibits in one day. You really need to figure out which ones you really want to see and which ones you can skip."

"Can we skip the zebras and go see the reptiles?" offered Parker.

"Parker, the reason why your father doesn't want to go is because of me," Brennan admitted, seeing that Booth and Parker were becoming frustrated with one another. "I have what may be termed as Ophidiophobia. It's a fear or extreme dislike of snakes."

"Oh," Parker uttered, realization dawning on him. He looked to his father with understanding, and replied "It's okay Bones, we don't have to go to the Reptile Discovery Center today. There's lots of other things to see."

"You can go with your father if you like," suggested Brennan. "I can wait for you at the exit."

"Nah," Parker said with a soft sigh. "We're here as a family, so we all go together. Besides, I've seen it-like-a hundred times. I practically know all of the reptiles in there. It's no big deal. Like Dad said, we should go to see the invertebrates."

For someone who was still learning the nuances of human interaction and behavior, Brennan found the Booth boys not as difficult to read as others. Even she could discern the disappointment in Parker's voice and his posture, though he bravely attempted to mask it with a smile. She took a deep breath, returned Parker's smile with a nervous one of her own and made her second leap of faith in one day.

"The Reptile Discovery Center isn't strictly relegated to displays involving snake habitats, am I correct in that assertion?" asked Brennan.

"Nuh uh!" replied Parker brightly, sensing where Brennan was going with this. "There are tortoises, and lizards and tree frogs and crocodiles. It's really cool!"

"Perhaps I could observe those reptiles while you explore the snake exhibits." offered Brennan.

"Bones, you don't have to do that, you know." Whispered Booth, leaning in so that his face close to hers. She looked into his eyes and saw warmth, admiration and something else. Something she had never seen before until Booth.

"I know," she grinned. "I want to. This is important to Parker. It's his favorite thing to see at the zoo."

"So I heard," chuckled Booth. "You're amazing Bones."

Booth thought that he loved Brennan before, but at that moment when she was preparing to face her fear for the sake of his son, he thought his heart would burst. It seemed as though every day, every minute with her confirmed the fact that this incredible woman was the only one he could spend the rest of his life with. The problem was convincing her of that.

"Thanks Bones," Parker beamed at her as he took her hand in his. "Don't worry, Dad and I won't let anything happen to you."

Brennan simply smiled at the boy who sounded and acted so much like his father. She let him lead her to the building that housed the disgusting creatures that interested Parker so intensely. There was a short line to enter, and as they waited, she began to fidget knowing what lay ahead. Just when they were going to be the next ones in, she took a few steadying breaths in order to still her anxiety when she felt the warmth of a familiar touch as Booth wrapped an arm around her waist.

**A/N2: Sorry if there were any inaccuracies about the zoo. Never been there before, so I was relying on the research that I did. Of course research doesn't compare to being there, so...again, sorry about any part of the zoo experience that I may have messed up.**


	7. Lean On Me

**A/N: Hey folks, me again. I know that there are those of you who have been wondering where I've been and what happened to this story. The answer is that I have kinda been having trouble with my health, and with a recent diagnosis. That trouble has made it difficult for me to focus on this or any story really. Trying to get back onto the saddle, but the darn thing is more slippery than it used to be. **

**To those who have PM'ed me asking me to continue this story and have sent me their support-I thank you wholeheartedly. To my dear friend Megan, you are the best sweetie! Thanks for all of the gentle nudging to get me back into writing. **

**One more thing, I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and if you decide to review please be gentle. As I've said, I'm still trying to get on that darn saddle. **

**Lotsa love,**

**Anne**

**Lean on me**

Parker took Brennan by the hand and said "I've visited this place a ton of times Bones. I know it like the back of my hand, and so does my dad. Just let us steer you, and you won't have to see any... you know."

"Thank you Parker." she said, hoping that her nervousness wasn't apparent.

"Just stay to the left and close your eyes when I tell you, okay?" said Parker, taking her by the hand. "It'll all be alright."

She smiled graciously at the boy, for whom she had a growing affection and admiration. At such a young age, Parker was showing signs of the high moral character and protective instincts that she had come to recognize in Booth, and to her surprise she felt some of her trepidation diminish simply due to the feel of his small, reassuring hand in hers. And of course, she felt safe in Booth's presence. She had once told him that it was because he was an army trained sniper and an FBI agent, but she was beginning to understand that it was more than that. His confidence, his air of authority, his alpha male ability to intimidate others and the certainty that he would go to great lengths to protect those he cared about-including her-is really what made Brennan feel safe. With Parker's hand in hers and Booth's hand at her waist, Brennan was ready to go forward.

"Okay, close your eyes now Bones." Parker said in a loud whisper just as they were about to go to the front of the line.

Brennan did as she was told. It was more than slightly unnerving for her to willingly enter into a building which contained creatures that happened to illicit an irrational fear response in her. It was even more strange for her to do so with her eyes closed. If asked, she would have most likely said that she understood that the snakes in the Reptile Discovery Center were enclosed and she was in no danger. Deep down though, in a place where she kept all of her thoughts, memories and emotions safe, she knew that Parker had spoken the truth; Booth wouldn't ever let anything bad happen to her.

She allowed herself to be navigated, listening carefully to Parker's instructions as he diligently directed each and every step while gently pulling her forward. Booth was at her side, making sure that she didn't trip or fall. She felt herself being spun slightly, and Parker squeezed her hand lightly.

"Okay Bones, you can open your eyes now." he instructed her.

She did as she was told and found herself looking at a soft shell tortoise.

"Are turtles okay for you?" asked Parker in a whisper loud enough for her to hear.

"I like turtles," she grinned at him. "Did you know that even though this is called a Florida Soft Shell Turtle, the leathery skin covering that extends over its shell is actually very, very hard?"

"Really?" said Parker enthusiastically. "What else do you know about turtles?"

Booth smiled at him, because he knew that Parker loved turtles and had one in his room at Rebecca's house. In fact, Booth knew that Parker did a great deal of research before asking his mother for a turtle. Rebecca even told Booth that one of the reasons she acquiesced was because she was so impressed by his study of practically anything and everything turtle. The only reason Parker was asking about turtles now, was because he seemed to know that exhibiting her knowledge seemed to help put Brennan at ease. He couldn't have been more proud of his son for being so perceptive, and also for being so willing to forgo his favorite exhibit once he knew that Brennan wasn't comfortable. He was also proud of Brennan for what she was willing to do for his son. If someone had told him a few days ago he would be at the zoo, looking at reptiles with his son and Brennan, he would have recommended that the person sign up with Sweets for a few sessions. But here he was, having fun spending the day with two of the people he loved the most in the world.

"Life is good." he muttered, unaware that he said it out loud.

"What do you mean?" asked Brennan, looking at him curiously.

"What are you talking about?" said Booth, roused from his reverie.

"You said 'life is good'," Brennan repeated. "What did you mean by that?"

"Just that I'm having a good time." shrugged Booth, pulling her closer to him.

"Oh," nodded Brennan, wrapping her arm around his waist. "In that case, I would agree with you. Life is good."

They explored the rest of the turtle conservation exhibits, when Parker advised Brennan to once again close her eyes while Booth and Parker guided her past the bank of snake enclosures to the crocodile display. Brennan told them what she knew of crocodiles, and included a case where a victim's corpse was dumped in an area known to be inhabited by crocodiles and was partially consumed.

"Does that mean the body was eaten?" inquired a wide eyed Parker.

"Yes," nodded Brennan. "In fact-"

"That's actually all he needs to know about that Bones," interrupted Booth. "The rest you can tell him after he's grown some armpit hair."

"Why?" asked both Brennan and Parker.

"We've talked about this before guys," sighed Booth. "There are just some aspects of the job that Parker isn't old enough to know about."

"All right," Parker shrugged. "Hey Bones, are you ready to see the green iguana?"

"Lead the way Park." Brennan smiled, closing her eyes and holding out her hand to him.

They made it to the Green Iguana, and Brennan marveled at how-with Booth and Parker's assistance, she had managed to make it nearly all the way through the Reptile Discovery Center without incident, and without having to look at a single snake. She was touched by the care that they were showing her, how they made sure that she was as comfortable as she could be considering her ophidiophobia and being surrounded by snake enclosures. Brennan was actually enjoying herself when she suddenly heard a loud noise and instinctively turned to see the source of the noise. Too late, Parker tried to warn her not to turn around.

"Booth!" she managed to squeak out as she found herself face to face with a seven foot long Northern Pine Snake. She tried to tell herself that she was perfectly safe, that there no way for the serpent to escape from its enclosure. That didn't appear to prevent her body from stiffening, or the strange mewling that seemed to be coming from her.

"It's okay Bones," she heard Booth say before he pulled her into him. "I got you."

She buried her face in the crook of his neck at his touch and let him guide her out of the building. Booth led her to a nearby bench, and rubbed her back until he felt her begin to relax. Even after she had managed to regain control of her breathing and was able to calm down, she found it difficult to let go of Booth and held on to him a little while longer.

"Are you all right Bones?" asked Parker hesitantly, handing her one of the bottles of water that he brought from Booth's apartment.

"I'm fine," she said, accepting the bottle of water gratefully. She took a few sips before continuing. "I'm sorry for ruining your visit to the Reptile Discovery Center."

"You didn't ruin anything Bones," he reassured her with a hug. "Thank you for coming with us. It means a lot to me."

"Thank you for inviting me." she said, hugging him back.

"Hey, there's a popsicle stand!" Booth pointed to the cart a few yards ahead of them. "Who wants a popsicle? My treat!"

"I do!" exclaimed Parker enthusiastically.

"What about you Bones?" asked Booth, getting up from the bench. "Want me to get you a Mr. Rocket?"

"Yes, I'd like that." Brennan replied, surprised that he remembered.

"Okay, two fudgesicles and a Mr. Rocket coming up," he declared, leaving the backpack with Brennan. He patted her knee and gave it a slight squeeze, and said, "Be right back."

Brennan grinned, and found herself unable to stop grinning as she watched Booth line up in front of the popsicle cart.

"Are you having fun Bones?" asked Parker, taking the seat that his father had just vacated.

"I'm having a great deal of fun, thank you Parker," she replied, finally able to look away from Booth. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"I'm having an awesome time, thanks Bones." he giggled.

"You're very welcome." she smiled before her attention returned to Booth. She noted that a rather attractive blond was talking to him, though he kept looking back towards Brennan and Parker.

"Who's that chick?" asked Parker with distain.

"Chick?" repeated Brennan.

"The lady trying to talk up my dad," explained Parker, nodding towards the blond woman in a very low cut floral dress. "Geez, can't she tell that he isn't into her at all?"

"How can you tell he isn't interested?" asked Brennan, finding that even though she didn't know this woman Brennan had an immediate dislike for her. "She appears to be very attractive."

"Well, just look at the way my dad is acting," Parker pointed out. "She keeps trying to lean closer or move closer to him, but he keeps leaning away. He also keeps looking here instead of looking at her. It's like the total opposite of how he is with you. He's always trying to get closer to you. And when you're around, it's like he has to try really hard not to stare at you. Besides, you're way prettier than her."

Sure enough, after Parker pointed out Booth's behavioral cues, Brennan was able to observe his apparent disinterest in this other woman versus the way he reacts in her presence. She also found herself quite irritated at this woman's attempts to attract Booth when he and Brennan are currently involved in a trial relationship. However, if Booth really wasn't interested in the woman, then why didn't he just tell her to leave him alone.

"Its too bad that my dad is too polite," sighed Parker, almost as though he had read her thoughts. "He wouldn't tell a woman off, even when she won't leave him alone."

Brennan found her irritation at this woman turn to ire at her continued attention towards Booth. He did appear to try and demonstrate the fact that he wasn't there alone, even turning to Brennan and waving to her. Brennan waved back, however, it didn't seem to deter the woman.

"Aren't you going to do something about her?" insisted Parker, looking at her expectantly.

"Me? Why should I do something?" asked Brennan, caught slightly off guard.

"He's your guy, right?" said Parker, hands at his hips, tapping his foot impatiently. "Think of it this way, if you guys were wolves, he'd be the alpha male and you would be the alpha female of the pack, right? So what would an alpha female do if another female was sniffing around her mate?"

"She would assert her dominance over the subordinate female." Brennan answered with a slightly feral look in her eye.

"Hey Bones, I have an idea on how you could do that." said Parker mischievously.

Parker then motioned for Brennan to come closer, and then whispered his plan to her.


	8. Don't Mess with My Man

**A/N: Nope, still not dead yet. I checked before I posted this chapter, though it has been waaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy too long since I have updated. For that, I'll have to beg forgiveness from the few who are still willing to read this story. You have my heart-well, pieces of it at least. You may have received it in the mail, along with a short instructional pamphlet on the maintenance and care of the piece. **

**To my dear friends mendenbar and 2bbornot2bb, I can't thank you enough for your friendship and constant support. I know, I could thank you by updating more, but real life has been a bully, scaring the everloving poop out of musie. I'd also like to thank them for the gentle nudges back to writing. By the way, mendenbar-have you seen the bunnies? Last thing they told me before they disappeared was "It's time" and they took off in a tank. Megan-thanks for the suggestions. I tried to work them in, but Musie wouldn't listen to me. For future chapters maybe?**

**As for all of you who've reviewed, favorited and/or alerted this story, you are angels to me. **

**Disclaimer: If you really have to ask, no-sadly-I don't own Bones or any of its characters. I barely have ownership of my own sanity. Yeah, and any/all characters are fictional. Any resemblance to persons famous or infamous are purely coincidental.**

**Don't Mess with My Man**

Booth was standing in line, waiting to get some popsicles for him and his family.

"Whoa," he said, catching himself with that though. "Slow it down Seeley. You still have to get her to realize you and her in a relationship would be a good thing. One step at a time there buddy, no need to rush things, start talking about family and the future and you'll chase Bones off."

Even though he kept trying to stop from getting ahead of himself, he couldn't wife the cheesy grin off of his face when he remembered waking up next to her, and the toe curling kisses that they shared that morning. He also couldn't keep from constantly looking back at them with his cheesy grin. Eh, there was no point in fighting it, he shrugged. He was happy and he didn't care who knew.

He was so busy being cheesy and looking back at Bones and Parker that he barely noticed being bumped into.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," a blonde little thing squeaked beside him as she clutched his arm to steady herself. "I'm such a klutz, I make Bambi look like a ballerina."

"No problem," Booth said kindly, though he could tell that her bumping into him wsn't as accidental as she was making it out to be. And if he wasn't finally with Bones, he would have been flattered.

"I should have been paying more attention," he said, waving to Bones. "I was busy making sure that my girlfriend and son are okay."

The blonde looked over to the bench that Booth kept glancing over to, and despite seeing Brennan waving back to him, seemed to decide that it was worth the risk.

"If I had a boyfriend as hot as you, I wouldn't leave your side," she giggled, taking a half step closer. "Especially with all of these divorcees hanging around with their kids. I heard the zoo is a real meet market. Get it? 'Meet' like-"

"Yeah, I got it," rushed Booth, taking a step back and feeling more than a little uncomfortable. Clearly, this woman wasn't deterred by his admission of being in a relationship. He continued to look back at the bench, wondering if Bones saw what was going on, and what she would do about it.

"My name is Bree," she giggled flirtatiously, her bright pink lips forming what was supposed to be a sexy smile. She looked like she had just sucked on a lemon. "Bree Wilton. You might have heard of my family's hotels."

"Sure, who hasn't." he nodded, realizing that this was one of those socialites who were famous for being famous. She was accustomed to getting what she wanted just because she wanted it. He had to get away from her before Brennan sees him and Bree, misconstrues the situation and kills off any chance that they have at a future together, or Brennan finds her jealous streak and gets arrested for kicking the blond girl's ass in public, and all of the trouble that would ensue. Although, in all honesty, he was slightly intrigued by the idea of Brennan getting into a fight over him.

"I gave you my name, why don't you give me yours?" she asked, mistakenly thinking that the smile that had just lit his face was for her.

"Seeley. Seeley Booth." he said automatically, politely shaking the hand that she proffered, and instantly regretting it when it was obvious that he was going to have some trouble getting it back.

"You mean, like the bed?" she winked, barely registering the fact that Booth was trying to pull his hand back.

"Bree, you seem like a nice girl and all," he began, finally regaining ownership of his hand and trying to let her down as nicely as he could. "But as I've said-I have a girlfriend and we're hap-"

"Listen, I get that you're nervous 'cause your old lady is around," she said, again leaning into him and dropping her squeak to a conspiratorial whisper. "And you don't want trouble with her. She doesn't have to know. Why don't we do this; slip me your phone so I can give you my number, and once she and your kid go to bed, we can meet up for drinks and...whatever."

"Can I help the next customer please?" the girl manning the popsicle cart called out.

With a relieved sigh, Booth side stepped around Bree and headed for the cart, gave his order, handed over the cash, hoping to avoid talking to the blonde again. He saw a crowd of tourists milling past them, and though it seemed a bit rude, he decided to go through the crowd, using them as a cover. Unfortunately, he underestimated Bree's persistence.

"Your hands look a little full there Seeley," Bree giggled again, advancing on him. "Why don't I get your phone for you? Let me guess, is it in one of your front pockets?"

"No, it isn't," gritted Booth, nearly bumping into someone as he backed up. "And as...interesting as it is meeting you, I've mentioned more than once that I already have a-"

"Hey Booth, what's taking so long?" asked a voice behind him.

"Bones!" He exclaimed, leaning over to kiss her, hoping that Bree would get the hint. What he didn't expect was how enthusiastically Brennan would respond to the kiss. In seconds, he all but forgot catching the attention of anyone other than the famed forensic anthropologist.

"Hey dad, can I have my fudgesicle before it completely melts?" asked Parker, tugging on the belt loop of Booth's jeans and interrupting the moment.

"Sorry about that Buddy," apologized Booth sheepishly as he handed his son the treat.

"No problemo dad." Parker shrugged.

"Sometimes my dad and Bones forget that they aren't alone." Parker explained to the blonde onlooker.

"Bones, interesting nickname." scoffed Bree, giving Brennan a dismissive once over.

"Only Booth and Parker are permitted to call me by that name," replied Brennan, her voice low enough to almost sound like a growl. "Booth has been calling me Bones since we first began working with each other. I'm Doctor Temperance Brennan. Who are you?"

"I'm Bree Wilton," said the blonde in a haughty tone that didn't escape Booth. "You know, the Wilton Hotels? Of course you do. Yeah, I'm one of those Wiltons, and I have my own reality show-Being Bree. I'm sure you've heard of it."

"I don't own a television," Brennan shook her head. "And I've only stayed in a Wilton Hotel room when there are no five star hotels within the area."

"I'll have you know that the Wilton Hotels provide the finest in affordable luxury-" sputtered Bree defensively.

"That's an oxymoron," Brennan corrected her. "An oxymoron being a term consisting of two words that appear to contradict each other. Affordable concerns an item or service being reasonably priced, while luxury describes something that is expensive, decadent-the opposite of affordable."

"I don't expect someone who doesn't even own a television to understand the concept of affordable luxury," huffed Bree arrogantly. "I mean, who doesn't own a television?"

"Bones has more important things to do than just sit around and watch TV. She's a Forensic Anthropologist. Even though she's officially employed by the Jeffersonian, her expertise is in high demand by every museum, institution of higher learning, and law enforcement agency in the world, declared Booth defensively, his arm slung around her shoulder. "And she's a certified genius, and of course the best partner an FBI agent could ever have."

"And she and my dad are partners. They solve murders together and are the best team in the FBI." Explained Parker.

"Well, maybe not the best," corrected Booth modestly, finally handing Brennan her Mr. Rocket. "But we're at least in the top, like ten, right Bones?"

"No, according to our solve rate and the number of our cases that have been successfully prosecuted. I believe Parker is correct." Mused Brennan as she took a bite out of her popsicle. "We are currently the best team in the FBI nationwide."

"But I thought you were some anthropologist or something." asked Bree, clearly confused and most likely upset that she wasn't going to have a chance with Booth.

"She happens to be the top expert in the field of Forensic Anthropology," said Booth proudly. "Forensic Anthropology, as in the study of the human skeletal system-you know, Bones."

"And she's loaded because she's a best selling author too," added Parker while Brennan blushed at all the praise. "And her books have been made into movies, and those movies have made boatloads of money. You've heard of Bred in the Bone, right? Yeah-she's that Doctor Temperance Brennan."

"Wow, you're a bone expert, you solve crimes, you write books, what do you do for fun?" asked Bree snarkily.

Before Booth or Brennan could answer, they noticed Parker jumping around beside them.

"Parker, what are you doing?" asked Brennan curiously.

"I'm trying to do a round house kick," replied Parker. "Bones, you're like a Karate Master, right?

"Brennan gave him enough pointers for Parker to be able to do the maneuver successfully. She congratulated him on the execution of the maneuver, and promised him that if he wanted, she would give him lessons.

"Really? That would be awesome," he exclaimed, giving her a hug. "What's the best move to do if you want to break someone's face?"

"Parker!" barked a surprised Booth. "You're not getting karate lessons from Bones just to learn how to break someone's face!"

"I know dad," said Parker patiently. "I would only do something like that if I were in danger and I had no choice. Have you ever broken someone's face Bones?"

"Parker, it's impossible to break someone's face. Faces are composed of both bone, flesh, and muscle. You can break bones, and cause skin to rip and tear, but technically, flesh is too-Booth, what's another word for malleable?" asked Brennan.

"Stretchy." smiled Booth.

"Yes, technically, flesh is too stretchy to be broken," Brennan explained. "However, there are several maneuvers-or strikes as they are called by martial arts practitioners-that can provide the amount of damage you seek to inflict."

"Have you ever broken someone's bones-Bones?" asked Parker.

"Yes, I have Parker," answered Brennan honestly. "But it was only in self defense, or in the defense of others."

"What about Judge Hasty?" Booth couldn't help but add. He saw the look on Bree's increasingly pale face, and tried hard not to laugh. Bad things happen when you underestimate Brennan.

"He poked me in the chest," replied Brennan defiantly. "Technically, that was assault."

"You're so not worth it." Snarled Bree, flicking a disdainful look at Booth.

"I disagree with you," said Bren, her voice low and threatening as she stepped in front of Bree. "He is very much worth it."

"Whatever." Bree said dismissively, flipping her hair at them as she walked away.

"Come on Bones," Booth said gently, snaking his arm around her shoulders. "Which animal do you want to see next?"

"Yeah Bones, your turn to choose." agreed Parker, taking his place on the other side of Brennan.

"Hmmm..." she hummed thoughtfully, feeling herself relax in Booth's arms. She wrapped an arm around his waist, and smiled when she came to her decision.

"I'd like to see the wolf exhibit." she declared.

"That's cool," grinned Parker. "I like wolves."

"Me too." agreed Brennan as she and Parker shared an understanding with their smile.

They spent the rest of the day enjoying their time together, with no idea as to what the young Booth had in store for them.


End file.
